Hong Kong-based Causeway Bay Books is to reopen in Taipei next year, the store’s former manager Lam Wing-kei (林榮基) said.
The politically progressive bookstore was forcefully closed last year following the detention of five of its staff, including Lam, by Chinese authorities.
“[The reopening] is symbolic of the resistance against China in the spirit of Causeway Bay Books,” Lam said in an interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (sister newspaper of the Taipei Times).
Photo: Sean Chao, Taipei Times
The store is to be sponsored by a Hong Kong democracy group that wished to remain anonymous and whose leader participated in the pro-democracy protest in the territory on July 1, Lam said.
The sponsor wants a swift reopening, but the “timing is not ideal,” because “Taiwanese independent bookstores fare worse than their Hong Kong counterparts,” Lam said, referring to a famed bookstore in Tainan that folded in April and another in Taipei that is facing a financial crisis.
Lam in February visited the city for the Taipei International Book Exhibition, but denied speculation that he would relaunch the bookstore in Taiwan.
However, he said the encouragement of Hong Kong pro-democracy advocates changed his mind.
“After some consideration, I think I am still capable of doing something, so I agreed. Running a bookstore is very interesting,” he said.
During another visit in May, Lam visited several independent bookstores across the nation to learn about operating costs, which he said he would continue to investigate while in Taiwan next month.
The bookstore would be launched downtown and would be slightly bigger than before, he said, adding that it would feature sensitive books that are banned in China.
“Chinese tourists would be the target. [The location] has to be easy for them to visit and they could bring some books back to China,” he said.
Lam said he would be personally involved in the store’s operations until it is financially sustainable without sponsorship.
“Causeway Bay Books might reopen in Hong Kong” if its business in Taiwan thrives, he said.
Although China has reduced its surveillance of him, the retired Lam said he had to be “careful” because “the Chinese Communist Party is crazy and no one can predict its behavior.”
Asked if he would immigrate to Taiwan, Lam said it would depend on whether China amends the Hong Kong Basic Law to allow the arrest of people suspected of treason, secession, sedition or subversion.
“I would have to run if China tried to arrest me according to this law. [Late Chinese rights activist] Liu Xiaobo (劉曉波) was in a terrible condition, which is what worries me the most,” Lam said.
While average Hong Kongers can stay in Taiwan for up to three months, Lam was only permitted to stay for up to 10 days.
Lam said the government asked him to submit a report and itinerary for his entrance application, a complicated process that even Hong Kong journalist Ching Cheong (程翔), who was imprisoned by China for espionage charges, is exempted from.
The government in May had asked Lam not to publicly announce his visit and law enforcement officers accompanied him throughout his stay in Taiwan, Lam said.
Since Lam is a public figure, pre-visit security planning is necessary to prevent violent incidents such as the one in January against Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong (黃之鋒) in Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, the National Immigration Agency said.
POLITICAL AGENDA: Beijing’s cross-strait Mid-Autumn Festival events are part of a ‘cultural united front’ aimed at promoting unification with Taiwan, academics said Local authorities in China have been inviting Taiwanese to participate in cross-strait Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations centered around ideals of “family and nation,” a move Taiwanese academics said politicizes the holiday to promote the idea of “one family” across the Taiwan Strait. Sources said that China’s Fujian Provincial Government is organizing about 20 cross-strait-themed events in cities including Quanzhou, Nanping, Sanming and Zhangzhou. In Zhangzhou, a festival scheduled for Wednesday is to showcase Minnan-language songs and budaixi (布袋戲) glove puppetry to highlight cultural similarities between Taiwan and the region. Elsewhere, Jiangsu Province is hosting more than 10 similar celebrations in Taizhou, Changzhou, Suzhou,
COGNITIVE WARFARE: Chinese fishing boats transmitting fake identification signals are meant to test Taiwan’s responses to different kinds of perceived incursions, a report said Chinese vessels are transmitting fake signals in Taiwan’s waters as a form of cognitive warfare, testing Taipei’s responses to various types of incursions, a report by the Institute for the Study of War said on Friday. Several Chinese fishing vessels transmitted fake automatic identification system (AIS) signals in Taiwan’s waters last month, with one mimicking a Russian warship and another impersonating a Chinese law enforcement vessel, the report said. Citing data from Starboard Maritime Intelligence, the report said that throughout August and last month, the Chinese fishing boat Minshiyu 06718 (閩獅漁06718) sailed through the Taiwan Strait while intermittently transmitting its own AIS
The Republic of China (ROC) is celebrating its 114th Double Ten National Day today, featuring military parades and a variety of performances and speeches in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei. The Taiwan Taiko Association opened the celebrations with a 100-drummer performance, including young percussionists. As per tradition, an air force Mirage 2000 fighter jet flew over the Presidential Office as a part of the performance. The Honor Guards of the ROC and its marching band also heralded in a military parade. Students from Taichung's Shin Min High School then followed with a colorful performance using floral imagery to represent Taiwan's alternate name
CHINESE INFILTRATION: Medical logistics is a lifeline during wartime and the reported CCP links of a major logistics company present a national security threat, an expert said The government would bolster its security check system to prevent China from infiltrating the nation’s medical cold chain, a national security official said yesterday. The official, who wished to stay anonymous, made the remarks after the Chinese-language magazine Mirror Media (鏡周刊) reported that Pharma Logistics (嘉里醫藥物流) is in charge of the medical logistics of about half of the nation’s major hospitals, including National Taiwan University Hospital and Taipei Veterans General Hospital. The company’s parent, Kerry TJ Logistics Co (嘉里大榮物流), is associated with the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the
RSS