The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked China to provide an explanation as to why jailed Taiwanese human rights advocate Lee Ming-che (李明哲) was abruptly transferred to another prison in Hebei Province, council Deputy Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said on Thursday.
Lee, a Taiwanese democracy advocate, has been detained in China since March last year and was sentenced to five years in prison after being convicted of “subversion of state power” in November last year.
Before his transfer, Lee was imprisoned at Chisan Prison in Hunan Province.
Chiu said that the council was informed of Lee’s transfer by the Taiwanese business association in Hunan, which said it was notified by the Chinese government on Oct. 19 that Lee had been taken to Yancheng Prison in Hebei.
The authorities did not provide further explanation, the association said.
Lee’s family was unaware of his transfer, Chiu said.
MAC and the Straits Exchange Foundation have already asked China’s Taiwan Affairs Office and Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits to provide an explanation for Lee’s abrupt transfer, including information on Yancheng’s visitation regulations, Chiu said.
Founded in 2002, Yancheng is one of two prisons that are run directly by the Chinese government. The facility spans 44 hectares and can house more than 1,600 prisoners, according to information published online by Chinese search engine Baidu Inc.
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