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Chinese agents acted like triads, says bookseller in abduction row Chinese agents acted like triads, says bookseller in abduction row
(about 2 months later)
An outspoken Hong Kong bookseller who has become a symbol of opposition to China’s authoritarian government has accused Chinese security agents of behaving like the notorious triad gangs in a bid to silence the publishers of provocative books about the country’s leaders.An outspoken Hong Kong bookseller who has become a symbol of opposition to China’s authoritarian government has accused Chinese security agents of behaving like the notorious triad gangs in a bid to silence the publishers of provocative books about the country’s leaders.
Lam Wing-kee shot to prominence in June when he revealed how he had been spirited into secret detention in eastern China by a mysterious group of agents supposedly acting on the orders of the Communist party leadership.Lam Wing-kee shot to prominence in June when he revealed how he had been spirited into secret detention in eastern China by a mysterious group of agents supposedly acting on the orders of the Communist party leadership.
Lam – one of five Hong Kong booksellers to vanish in mysterious circumstances since 2015 – claimed he had spent months in solitary confinement and had even considered taking his own life.Lam – one of five Hong Kong booksellers to vanish in mysterious circumstances since 2015 – claimed he had spent months in solitary confinement and had even considered taking his own life.
He decided to speak out in mid-June after his captors allowed him to return to the former British colony where he had run a bookshop in the Causeway Bay area.He decided to speak out in mid-June after his captors allowed him to return to the former British colony where he had run a bookshop in the Causeway Bay area.
Related: Bookseller abductions: China demands Lam Wing-kee return from Hong Kong
Chinese police have rejected Lam’s claims, accusing the bookseller of breaking his bail terms and demanding he return to the mainland or face “criminal compulsory measures”.Chinese police have rejected Lam’s claims, accusing the bookseller of breaking his bail terms and demanding he return to the mainland or face “criminal compulsory measures”.
In an interview with the South China Morning Post published on Friday, Lam said he was considering fleeing to Taiwan in a bid to escape the clutches of Chinese police.In an interview with the South China Morning Post published on Friday, Lam said he was considering fleeing to Taiwan in a bid to escape the clutches of Chinese police.
“The government in Taiwan is a democratically elected one, unlike in mainland China,” Lam, 61, was quoted as saying.“The government in Taiwan is a democratically elected one, unlike in mainland China,” Lam, 61, was quoted as saying.
The bookseller claimed that during his time in detention he had been psychologically tortured and, despite having committed no crime, coerced into making a “forced confession” that he had smuggled banned books into mainland China.The bookseller claimed that during his time in detention he had been psychologically tortured and, despite having committed no crime, coerced into making a “forced confession” that he had smuggled banned books into mainland China.
“What would you plead after you were confined for five months under triad-like circumstances?” Lam told the newspaper, adding: “There were no court procedures whatsoever.”“What would you plead after you were confined for five months under triad-like circumstances?” Lam told the newspaper, adding: “There were no court procedures whatsoever.”
Speaking earlier this week, Lam said he feared being abducted from the streets of Hong Kong and returned to the mainland. “I feel half-dead,” he told Ming Pao, another local newspaper.Speaking earlier this week, Lam said he feared being abducted from the streets of Hong Kong and returned to the mainland. “I feel half-dead,” he told Ming Pao, another local newspaper.
Writing in the Diplomat, Amnesty International’s China researcher William Nee said Lam’s testimony had provided “a blow-by-blow account of the abusive tools that have become Chinese authorities’ modus operandi to silence critics since President Xi Jinping came to power in 2012”.Writing in the Diplomat, Amnesty International’s China researcher William Nee said Lam’s testimony had provided “a blow-by-blow account of the abusive tools that have become Chinese authorities’ modus operandi to silence critics since President Xi Jinping came to power in 2012”.
Lam’s latest claims come on the eve of the one-year anniversary of what activists say has been an unprecedented government assault on China’s human rights lawyers.Lam’s latest claims come on the eve of the one-year anniversary of what activists say has been an unprecedented government assault on China’s human rights lawyers.
Speaking during a visit to Beijing on Thursday, the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, urged his hosts “to create the space needed for the civil society to play its crucial role”.Speaking during a visit to Beijing on Thursday, the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, urged his hosts “to create the space needed for the civil society to play its crucial role”.
Human rights and environmental activists could “act as a catalyst for social progress and economic goals”, Ban added.Human rights and environmental activists could “act as a catalyst for social progress and economic goals”, Ban added.