The financial scandal involving Rebar Asia Pacific Group that erupted last week once again highlights the need for a cross-strait mechanism for extraditing criminals. In the absence of such measures, unscrupulous criminals will continue taking advantage of and profiting from the political impasse between Taiwan and China to avoid suffering the repercussions of their wrongdoings.
That criminals big and small have been seeking a haven across the Strait to avoid punishment is not a new phenomenon. In fact, this practice has become so commonplace that the only reason people like Wang You-theng (
In any other country, the authorities would request the extradition of criminals via formal channels and official agreements. Taiwan does not enjoy such recourse as it only has formal agreements with a handful of countries. This stems from the fact that most countries do not recognize Taiwan as a sovereign state -- including the country where most Taiwanese fugitives flee after committing a crime, China.
It is quite unlikely that a bilateral treaty on extradition with Beijing will be inked anytime soon. Taipei should nevertheless continue to insist on establishing a system, however informal, for the extradition of wanted individuals.
A precedent was set in the 1990s when -- with assistance from the Red Cross -- Taipei and Beijing reached an agreement on the return of illegal Chinese immigrants to China.
China's image abroad has been greatly damaged by the fact that it has become a haven of choice for criminals fleeing prosecution. Beijing's inaction on this issue is in stark contrast to other countries' assistance when Beijing seeks the extradition of corrupt Chinese officials.
Last year, Beijing signed a bilateral extradition treaty with Spain -- the first developed country to enter such a treaty with China. A similar agreement with France is expected soon. Reacting to a growing number of corrupt former Chinese officials fleeing to developed countries, Beijing has been stepping up its efforts to sign extradition treaties with many of them.
What makes matters worse for Taiwan is that many of the criminals who run off to China use their stolen money to finance projects there. Adding salt to the wound, every now and then some of these criminals are wined and dined by Chinese officials. Such scenes engender great resentment, especially on the part of hardworking Taiwanese who have lost life-long savings to these criminals.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (
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