Taiwanese democracy advocate Lee Ming-che (李明哲) yesterday said that the arrest in China of Gusa Press editor in chief Li Yanhe (李延賀), also known as Fucha (富察), is a sign that the Beijing government is extending its suppression of freedom of speech to the publishing industry in Taiwan.
Li returned to Shanghai last month to cancel his household registration, but was secretly arrested by police. His friends and family have not heard from him since.
He was born in China’s Liaoning Province, has a doctorate in Chinese language and literature, and was a deputy managing editor of Shanghai Literature and Art Publishing House. He later married a Taiwanese and has been living in Taiwan for several years. He established Gusa Press (八旗文化) in 2009, received a resident certificate in 2013 and has reportedly obtained Republic of China citizenship.
Photo: Chen Yu-fu, Taipei Times
Lee, who served a five-year prison sentence in China on charges of “subversion of state power,” said that Beijing’s attempt to extend its suppression of free speech to Taiwan’s publishing industry should be taken seriously and discussed.
Lee said that Gusa Press has published books, including The China Record: An Assessment of the People’s Republic (中國紀錄:評估中華人民共和國) and Tibet — 70 Years of Domination under the People’s Republic of China (新疆—被中共支配的七十年), that are directly aimed at the core of China’s autocratic regime, so the Beijing government is now clearly reaching out to suppress the most free and open Chinese-language publishing market — Taiwan.
“The issue is how will Taiwanese society react to it? Remain silent out of fear? Or should we let Taiwan and the global society know about the suppression? It is a choice that Taiwanese society has to make,” he said. “What do we choose when our core values are being suppressed?”
“China’s suppression of Taiwan’s self-determination will never stop, and Fucha’s case is just the beginning,” Lee said.
China used to secretly exert pressure, but now it just flagrantly arrests people, he added.
Faced with that pressing threat, Taiwanese society should voice its resistance, he said, adding: “Give dictators an inch and they will take a mile.”
With Fucha at the helm, Gusa Press has published books that break down the concept of Chinese nationalism, which is the base of the Chinese government’s rule, in addition to books on how China is suppressing human rights and non-fiction reports about Chinese society, Lee said.
The books can help Taiwanese understand and break away from a Greater China perspective of history, empowering Taiwanese to resist Beijing’s call for the “great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation,” Lee said.
Gusa Press on Sunday issued a statement, saying that the publishing house, upholding the principle of spreading knowledge, will continue to publish good quality books, and that it believes Fucha, who is lenient toward others and full of passion toward publishing, will be able to continue sharing his knowledge and passion with everyone soon, and that they await his safe return.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as