The mother of a murdered Hong Kong woman yesterday blasted the authorities for allowing her daughter’s killer to live as a free man, a case that has festered because China does not recognize Taiwan.
Poon Hiu-wing (潘曉穎), 19, was pregnant when she was strangled by her boyfriend, Chan Tong-kai (陳同佳), during a Valentine’s Day trip to Taiwan in 2018.
The murder, which Chan has admitted to, sparked a chain reaction that led to huge democracy protests the following year and has been a source of embarrassment for the Hong Kong government.
Photo: AP
Poon’s mother — who has never revealed her name — held an emotional news conference outside the government headquarters yesterday, calling on authorities to either fly Chan to Taiwan or prosecute him locally for murder.
“The Hong Kong government believes that this felon, who can kill again at any time, is fit to walk the streets and threaten people’s lives,” she told reporters.
Chan had “never faced consequences for murder,” she said, after it was revealed earlier this month that he had left police protection and was free to live a normal life.
Hong Kong prosecutors said that they had no jurisdiction to try him for murder. They also declined to send Chan to Taiwan.
After Poon’s murder, the territory tried to pass a law that would allow extraditions to both Taiwan and mainland China, but that sparked protests by Hong Kongers who feared that the law could see them disappear into mainland China’s opaque courts.
Those rallies soon morphed into huge and often violent democracy demonstrations, which convulsed the territory for seven straight months in 2019.
Chan served a short jail sentence in Hong Kong on money laundering charges, as he was in possession of Poon’s credit card on his return from Taiwan. It was during those proceedings that he admitted to killing her.
Chan previously said via an intermediary that he was willing to face justice in Taiwan, but no steps have been taken by him or the Hong Kong authorities to make that happen.
Taiwan and Hong Kong have blamed each other over the impasse.
The first global hotel Keys Selection by the Michelin Guide includes four hotels in Taiwan, Michelin announced yesterday. All four received the “Michelin One Key,” indicating guests are to experience a “very special stay” at any of the locations as the establishments are “a true gem with personality. Service always goes the extra mile, and the hotel provides much more than others in its price range.” Of the four hotels, three are located in Taipei and one in Taichung. In Taipei, the One Key accolades were awarded to the Capella Taipei, Kimpton Da An Taipei and Mandarin Oriental Taipei. Capella Taipei was described by
EVA Airways today confirmed the death of a flight attendant on Saturday upon their return to Taiwan and said an internal investigation has been launched, as criticism mounted over a social media post accusing the airline of failing to offer sufficient employee protections. According to the post, the flight attendant complained of feeling sick on board a flight, but was unable to take sick leave or access medical care. The crew member allegedly did not receive assistance from the chief purser, who failed to heed their requests for medical attention or call an ambulance once the flight landed, the post said. As sick
The Taichung District Court yesterday confirmed its final ruling that the marriage between teenage heir Lai (賴) and a man surnamed Hsia (夏) was legally invalid, preventing Hsia from inheriting Lai’s NT$500 million (US$16.37 million) estate. The court confirmed that Hsia chose not to appeal the civil judgement after the court handed down its ruling in June, making the decision final. In the June ruling, the court said that Lai, 18, and Hsia, 26, showed “no mutual admiration before the marriage” and that their interactions were “distant and unfamiliar.” The judge concluded that the couple lacked the “true intention of
INDUSTRY: Beijing’s latest export measures go beyond targeting the US and would likely affect any country that uses Chinese rare earths or related tech, an academic said Taiwanese industries could face significant disruption from China’s newly tightened export controls on rare earth elements, as much of Taiwan’s supply indirectly depends on Chinese materials processed in Japan, a local expert said yesterday. Kristy Hsu (徐遵慈), director of the Taiwan ASEAN Studies Center at the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research, said that China’s latest export measures go far beyond targeting the US and would likely affect any country that uses Chinese rare earths or related technologies. With Japan and Southeast Asian countries among those expected to be hit, Taiwan could feel the impact through its reliance on Japanese-made semi-finished products and
RSS