About 610 Taiwanese nationals accused of crimes in other countries were extradited to China from 2016 to 2019, international non-governmental organization (NGO) Safeguard Defenders said yesterday, calling on the international community to intervene in the practice.
Based in Madrid, the organization is a human rights NGO founded in late 2016, its Web site says.
It released an eight-page report titled China’s Hunt for Taiwanese Overseas, which compiled data from news reports, government news releases and other sources available to the public.
Screengrab from Safeguard Defenders report.
“Through transnational repression and formal extraditions, the PRC [People’s Republic of China] is pursuing economic fugitives, Uyghur refugees, human rights defenders and fleeing Hong Kongers. But one group that has received far less attention to date: hundreds of Taiwanese nationals have been detained and forcibly extradited to mainland China from around the world,” the group said in a news release yesterday.
From 2016 to 2019, 610 Taiwanese nationals were extradited to China from around the world, including 219 from Spain, 117 from Cambodia and 79 from the Philippines, the report said.
The exact number might be larger, as the group had some difficulty obtaining data from Taiwanese authorities, Safeguard Defenders coordinator and researcher Chen Yen-ting (陳彥廷) told the Taipei Times by telephone.
Most of the extraditions of Taiwanese have taken place over the past five years, the report said.
“In many ways, the case in Kenya is emblematic of this change,” it said.
In 2014, China began pressuring Kenya over a group of more than 70 Chinese and Taiwanese nationals wanted for suspected telecommunications fraud, and in 2016 Kenya agreed to transfer some of them to China, it said.
“At least two of the Taiwanese nationals were later shown delivering televised forced confessions in China,” it said.
Straits Exchange Foundation and China’s Association for Relations across the Taiwan Straits in 2009 signed a Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement in which they agreed to cooperate on crime fighting, investigation and collection of evidence, apprehension and repatriation of convicted people, among other areas.
Beijing’s refusal to fulfill its obligations is arguably a response to what it sees as the more pro-independence mentality of President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) administration, which came to power in May 2016, the report said.
“The extradition of Taiwanese nationals to China should be seen explicitly as a violation of their rights to a fair trial and to be free from torture,” the report said.
“The international community should take immediate steps to intervene in this practice,” it said. “This opposition doesn’t even have to wade into the politically charged ‘One China’ narratives.”
The global community should also allow Taiwanese representatives to participate in international forums, it said, adding that it is time for Taiwan to join the Interpol.
The Ministry of the Interior (MOI) is to tighten rules for candidates running for public office, requiring them to declare that they do not hold a Chinese household registration or passport, and that they possess no other foreign citizenship. The requirement was set out in a draft amendment to the Enforcement Rules of the Public Officials Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法 ) released by the ministry on Thursday. Under the proposal, candidates would need to make the declaration when submitting their registration forms, which would be published in the official election bulletin. The move follows the removal of several elected officials who were
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
FOUR DESIGNATED AREAS: Notices were issued for live-fire exercises in waters south and northwest of Penghu, northeast of Keelung and west of Kaohsiung, they said The military is planning three major annual exercises across the army, navy and air force this month, with the navy’s “Hai Chiang” (海強, “Sea Strong”) drills running from today through Thursday, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. The Hai Chiang exercise, which is to take place in waters surrounding Taiwan, would feature P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft and S-70C anti-submarine helicopters, the ministry said, adding that the drills aim to bolster the nation’s offshore defensive capabilities. China has intensified military and psychological pressure against Taiwan, repeatedly sending warplanes and vessels into areas near the nation’s air defense identification zone and across
A Chinese takeover of Taiwan would severely threaten the national security of the US, Japan, the Philippines and other nations, while global economic losses could reach US$10 trillion, National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Lin Fei-fan (林飛帆) wrote in an article published yesterday in Foreign Affairs. “The future of Taiwan is not merely a regional concern; it is a test of whether the international order can withstand the pressure of authoritarian expansionism,” Lin wrote in the article titled “Taiwan’s Plan for Peace Through Strength — How Investments in Resilience Can Deter Beijing.” Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) intent to take Taiwan by force
RSS