The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday confirmed that authorities in Shanghai had detained 12 Taiwanese investment advisers after conducting a road on a firm that reportedly employs the most Taiwanese advisers in China.
Nine suspects were released on bail, while three remained in custody.
Shanghai police made the arrests after searching Shanghai Qian He Yi Co (上海仟和億公司).
The Taiwanese government has attached a high level of importance to the incident, the council said.
The Criminal Investigation Bureau has demanded that Chinese authorities honor the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement (海峽兩岸共同打擊犯罪及司法互助協議) and inform it of the names of the 12 people and the charges they face, as well as the whereabouts of the three that remained in custody, the council added.
The Straits Exchange Foundation is working to obtain more information regarding the incident through the Shanghai Association of Taiwan, the council said.
Taiwanese agencies would follow the incident closely to ensure that the rights of the 12 Taiwanese are protected, it added.
The council urged Chinese authorities to prioritize cases involving Taiwanese, handle them with prudence and ensure transparency throughout the judicial process.
Chinese authorities should honor the mutual judicial assistance agreement and allow the detained Taiwanese the right to communication, including making telephone calls to inform others of their condition and receiving visitors, it said.
The nation’s laws do not prohibit Taiwanese from working as investment advisers in China, but people should be mindful of China’s laws and the way in which its judiciary operates, which is vastly different from Taiwan or other democratic societies, the council said.
Taiwanese in China should be extra cautious regarding their safety, it added.
New Party presidential candidate Yang Shih-kuang (楊世光), who is reportedly linked to Shanghai Qian He Yi, confirmed the news.
Yang attributed the incident to the mothballing of the cross-strait service trade agreement after then-Academia Sinica researcher Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌), now a New Power Party legislator, and others launched the Sunflower movement in 2014.
As the agreement was not ratified, the titles on the licenses of the detained investment advisers might not match the sectors in which Taiwanese are allowed to work in China, which could cause confusion, he said.
Huang and the council should bear responsibility and offer assistance to those affected, he added.
The council last night issued a statement rejecting Yang’s remarks, saying that the incident is unrelated to the service trade agreement.
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