Falun Gong practitioners in Taiwan yesterday filed a lawsuit against Beijing Deputy Mayor Ji Lin (吉林) — who arrived in Taiwan in the afternoon — for the abuse of Falun Gong practitioners in Beijing.
“Having served in several party and government leadership positions in Beijing since 1998, Ji has played either an assisting or leading role in mass arrests of Falun Gong practitioners in the city,” Taiwan Falun Dafa Association chairman Chang Ching-hsi (張清溪) told reporters outside the Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office.
“In 2008, when he served on the organizing committee of the Beijing Olympics, he launched another wave of mass arrests of Falun Gong practitioners in Beijing in the name of security, which led to the torture and death of a well-known local musician, Yu Zhou (于宙),” Chang said.
Ji, who the Falun Gong had said would arrive at 11:55pm, arrived in Taiwan at about 3pm, accompanied by a delegation of more than 200 members for meetings on potential cooperation in business and technology.
DISCREPANCY
At press time, the discrepancy in Ji’s time of arrival could not be accounted for.
Falun Gong practitioner and attorney Teresa Chu (朱婉琪) said the legislature adopted a resolution on Tuesday last week requiring government authorities — including the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) and the National Immigration Agency (NIA) — to deny entry into Taiwan to Chinese officials who are known to have been involved in human rights abuses.
The resolution was proposed by Democratic Progressive Party legislators Tien Chiu-chin (田秋堇) and Chen Ting-fei (陳亭妃) and received support from lawmakers across party lines.
Aside from the legislature’s adoption of the resolution, six counties and cities — Kaohsiung, Changhua, Hualien, Miaoli and Yunlin counties, as well as Kaohisung and Chiayi cities — have adopted similar, albeit separate, resolutions.
PRECEDENT
“Ji is the first Chinese official who has committed crimes against humanity, but who was nevertheless permitted to come into the country since the adoption of the resolution,” Chu said. “This is why we’re filing the lawsuit.”
As knowledge of which Chinese officials were human rights violators was difficult to determine, Chu called on the MAC and NIA to publicize a list of Chinese officials invited to visit “so that we can help the government identify who has committed crimes against humanity and provide evidence.”
Responding to the development, NIA Deputy Director-General Ho Jung-tsun (何榮村) told the Taipei Times by telephone that “the permission for Ji’s visit was issued before the [legislative] resolution on Dec. 7,” which appeared to suggest that the resolution was not retroactive.
“Since prosecutors have taken over the case, we will do our best to assist them and follow whatever they want us to do,” Ho said.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College