The government would do everything possible to ensure the safe return of a Chinese spouse of a Taiwanese who went missing after being detained in China, Premier Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) said yesterday.
Chen made the remarks after the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the sister paper of the Taipei Times) in an exclusive report yesterday quoted sources as saying that a person from China who has been married to a Taiwanese for more than two decades and held a Republic of China identity card was arrested in China, allegedly over her ties to groups that support President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文).
The detention happened during a trip to see family in August, the source was quoted as saying, adding that it is currently unknown whether Beijing is targeting Tsai supporters or that she was detained on other charges.
Photo: screen grab from the Mainland Affairs Council Facebook page
Chen yesterday told lawmakers at the legislature in Taipei that the government is aware that a large number of Taiwanese visitors to China have been detained by the authorities there in recent years.
Taiwanese who travel to China for business, education or pleasure should be vigilant about their personal safety and not hesitate to contact Taiwanese officials if they feel they or their loved ones are at risk, he said.
The government would do its utmost to protect the safety and rights of Taiwanese in China, he added.
The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has not yet received any petition or request for help from the missing person or members of her family, MAC Minister Chiu Tai-san (邱太三) told lawmakers during the same session.
Officials are in the process of reaching out to the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) and people close to the matter for clarification and confirmation, Chiu said, adding that more information would be announced if the situation has been ascertained to be true.
Separately, SEF spokeswoman Tsai Meng-chun (蔡孟君) confirmed that a naturalized Taiwanese citizen was reportedly missing in China and that a request for aid had been made by a friend.
However, the family of the missing person did not ask for help and the foundation is in the process of reaching out to people close to the matter for clarification, she said.
The MAC must do all that is necessary to ensure the safe return of the missing person if the story is true, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsu Chih-chieh (許智傑) said, adding that the government should also ask the international community for help.
Beijing should release all Taiwanese nationals it is holding, including the Chinese spouse and Gusa Press (八旗文化) editor-in-chief Li Yanhe (李延賀), who was detained in China in April after returning to visit family, Hsu said.
Tunghai University political science professor Shen Yu-chung (沈有忠) said that China’s policy on Taiwanese visitors is in a state of contradiction between Beijing’s demands to expand cross-strait exchanges and increasing fear of challenges to national security.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has ordered subordinate organizations in charge of dealing with Taiwan to restore and deepen bilateral ties that were disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, he wrote in a report to the MAC, citing the party’s 20th National Congress and other official accounts.
Concurrently, Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) efforts to secure his grip on power as president for life have been complicated by poor economic performance, adverse developments in international politics and floods in July, he said.
This has led to a ramp-up of the activities of the CCP’s security apparatus and conflict with organizations responsible for fostering ties with Taiwan due to bureaucratic compartmentalization, Hsu said.
As a result, Taiwanese who are invited by to China by the Taiwan Affairs Office could find themselves in the sights of state security apparatus, he said.
For example, Taiwanese guests of the office have been interrogated, searched or detained on multiple occasions by Chinese security officials utilizing the arbitrary powers granted to them by recent amendments to espionage laws, he said.
Such incidents have dampened the enthusiasm of Taiwanese professionals and academics to attend conferences in China, Hsu said, adding that the situation shows poor coordination between Beijing’s agencies interfacing with Taiwan and its security establishment.
Additional reporting by Chen Yu-fu
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