Chinese authorities will not allow stubborn Taiwanese independence supporters to “escape punishment,” China’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokesman Chen Binhua (陳斌華) told a routine news conference yesterday.
Chen was responding to a reporter’s question on whether Beijing’s judicial guidelines on punishing Taiwanese for supporting independence applied to the recently jailed Yang Chih-yuan (楊智淵) and if his rights, under Chinese law, have been observed.
Yang, cofounder of the Taiwan National Party, was earlier this month found guilty of secession and sentenced to nine years in prison after being arrested while visiting China’s Zhejiang Province.
Photo: screen grab from the Internet
Chen said the Chinese government has already provided a “very detailed” account of the judicial investigation into Yang’s crimes and the defendant’s rights had been protected under Chinese law.
Beijing recently established a platform for informants to submit reports on Taiwanese independence supporters, he said, adding that police would investigate every complaint to make sure none would escape punishment.
Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council has said that Beijing has no legitimate jurisdictional claim over Taiwan and the guidelines would only increase divisiveness and strife that undermine cross-strait relations.
Taiwan and Yang’s family reject the outcome of Yang’s trial, as Beijing did not publish a verdict or provide documentation on the court’s proceedings, the council said.
Beijing has been stepping up its campaign against those it accuses of being “separatists,” including threatening in June to execute “die-hard separatists.”
Last month, it published an e-mail address where people could report tips about such crimes committed by such people.
Asked how the e-mail system was working, Chen reiterated that the measures target only a very small minority.
“After the establishment of the mailbox for reporting die-hard Taiwan independence elements, people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait have responded with practical actions,” he said.
The Taiwanese government, which says only Taiwanese can decided their future, has condemned China’s new campaign, and warned against all but absolutely necessary travel to the country. China says that is alarmist nonsense.
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