As the 10th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to China approaches, Beijing has tightened its control over Hong Kong, resulting in the detention and repatriation of Taiwanese Falun Gong practitioners, the practitioners said yesterday.
Over a dozen Falun Gong practitioners from Taiwan who sought to enter Hong Kong with valid visas and passports on Sunday and Monday were detained overnight by immigration officers at Hong Kong International Airport and sent home without explanation, said Theresa Chu (
Chu made the remarks at a news conference in Taipei yesterday morning, during which other Falun Gong practitioners who have been denied entry to Hong Kong over the past few days told their story and condemned the Chinese government.
PHOTO: AFP
Chu said she arrived in Hong Kong late on Sunday night with a valid passport and visa, but "as soon as the immigration officer learned my name, he took me to the immigration office."
Chu was informed by immigration officials on duty at the time that she could appeal, but "police officers came to me on Monday morning and told me I no longer had the right to appeal," Chu said.
"Six female police officers wrapped me with a bomb blanket and forced me into a wheelchair. They then took me to the boarding gate," she said.
After returning to Taiwan, Chu said she learned from a Taichung travel agency that Hong Kong Immigration officials had informed all airlines that Falun Gong practitioners were unwelcome there.
"All Falun Gong practitioners will be on the `unwelcome list' as Hong Kong prepares for celebrations for the 10th anniversary of its return [to China] on July 1st," a copy of a fax that Chu obtained from the travel agency read.
Not all of the people who were detained and sent back to Taiwan were Falun Gong practitioners.
Meanwhile, Chu was detained again as she attempted to enter Hong Kong yesterday.
"I was taken to the immigration office right after I arrived in Hong Kong this afternoon and I'm sitting here all by myself," Chu said as she spoke to the Taipei Times from Hong Kong.
At a separate event, Government Information Office Minister Shieh Jhy-wey (謝志偉) accused Hong Kong immigration authorities of being "absolutely wrong" for denying entry to the Taiwanese Falun Gong members.
He said the decision showed that Hong Kong's human rights and democracy had regressed to a level much lower than that enjoyed by its residents 10 years ago.
Additional reporting by CNA
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it had deployed patrol vessels to expel a China Coast Guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. The China Coast Guard vessel was 28 nautical miles (52km) northeast of Pratas at 6:15am on Thursday, approaching the island’s restricted waters, which extend 24 nautical miles from its shoreline, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch said in a statement. The Tainan, a 2,000-tonne cutter, was deployed by the CGA to shadow the Chinese ship, which left the area at 2:39pm on Friday, the statement said. At 6:31pm on Friday,
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, would pose a steep challenge to Taiwan’s ability to defend itself against a full-scale invasion, a defense expert said yesterday. Institute of National Defense and Security Research analyst Chieh Chung (揭仲) made the comment hours after the PLAN confirmed the carrier recently passed through the Taiwan Strait to conduct “scientific research tests and training missions” in the South China Sea. China has two carriers in operation — the Liaoning and the Shandong — with the Fujian undergoing sea trials. Although the PLAN needs time to train the Fujian’s air wing and
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group
RSS