Four of the five Hong Kong publishing company and bookstore officials who went missing in October last year appeared on Chinese television confirming for the first time that they had been detained for “illegal book trading” in China.
The five — including a British and Swedish national — had been linked to publishing house Mighty Current (巨流) and its store, Causeway Bay Books (銅鑼灣圖書), that specialized in gossipy books on the private lives and power struggles of Chinese Communist Party leaders.
The disappearances prompted fears that Chinese authorities might be using shadowy tactics that erode the “one country, two systems” formula under which Hong Kong has been governed since its return to Beijing’s rule in 1997.
Four of the men, China-born Swedish national Gui Minhai (桂民海), co-owner of Mighty Current; Lui Por (呂波), Cheung Chi Ping (張志平) and Lam Wing Kee (林榮基), gave details of their alleged offences to Phoenix Television on Sunday night.
“I have deeply reflected on what I have done and very much regret the illegal book trading I have carried out with Gui Minhai,” said Lui in the Phoenix TV report.
In a four-minute report that involved exclusive interviews with the four, they confessed to selling “unauthorized” books in China via an online platform and evading customs inspections to deliver about 4,000 books to 380 customers since October 2014.
Gui said that he had altered and obscured the covers of the Hong Kong-printed books with nylon bags to “evade” customs security checks and was singled out by the others as the mastermind.
The group had also opened a bank account in China to make payments.
Gui had previously confessed on Chinese state television to a fatal drink-driving incident more than a decade ago, after going missing in Pattaya, Thailand, in October last year.
The TV report also detailed how Lui, Cheung and Lee had been arrested by Chinese authorities in Shenzhen and Dongguan, in October and then called upon to testify in the case.
“I know that Gui Minhai’s books are fabricated. They were downloaded from the Internet, and were pieced together from magazines,” Lam said. “They have generated lots of rumors in society and brought a bad influence... I deeply acknowledge my mistakes and am willing to be penalized.”
The only one of the five not to appear in the report was Lee Bo (李波), a British passport holder and co-owner of the bookstore, who Britain said had been “involuntarily removed” to China from Hong Kong in late December last year, constituting a “serious breach” of a bilateral treaty between the two countries.
The Phoenix Television report said Lam, Lui and Cheung might be allowed to return to Hong Kong this week, citing unspecified sources, but Gui was expected to remain in detention.
A Phoenix Television spokesperson could not immediately be reached for comment on how the broadcaster had gained access to the four men.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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