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Beijing Pressures Countries to Deport Taiwanese Nationals to China, Report Says

A CH-47 Chinook helicopter carries a Taiwan flag during national day celebrations in Taipei on Oct. 10, 2021. (Sam Yeh/AFP via Getty Images)

TAIPEI, Taiwan—China is pressuring countries to send citizens of Taiwan to mainland China, Madrid-based human rights group Safeguard Defenders said in its latest report.

In doing so, the communist regime is undermining the self-ruled island’s sovereignty, the human rights group wrote in its Nov. 30 report titled “China’s Hunt for Taiwanese Overseas.” Taiwanese nationals being targeted by the regime to deport or extradite to the mainland are those suspected of having committed crimes outside of Taiwan.

Taiwanese crime suspects are hardly the only group of people the Chinese regime pursues “without hesitation” to violate international norms, according to the report. Other groups included Uyghur refugees, human rights defenders, and fleeing Hongkongers.

However, the report pointed out the plight of the Taiwanese nationals has received far less attention, considering that over 600 citizens of Taiwan were extradited to China from around the world between 2016 and 2019.

During that four-year span, Spain deported a total of 219 Taiwanese nationals to China, the highest number among eight countries, according to the report. Cambodia deported 117, the Philippines 79, Armenia 78, Malaysia 53, Kenya 45, Indonesia 18, and Vietnam 1.

“ fundamental issue here is that the denial of fundamental human rights in China, namely the right to a fair trial and to be free of torture, are systematically denied,” Michael Caster, senior adviser at Safeguard Defenders and who worked on the report, told Pezou via email.

“Under international legal norms, the principle of non-refoulement dictates that no individual is to be sent to a country where they are at risk of persecution and denial of fundamental rights.”

Chinese courts are notorious for being a tool by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to silence critics and punish dissidents. Prisoners and detainees have reported beatings, sexual assaults, torture, limited or no access to medical care, and other ill treatment inside Chinese prisons and detention centers.

“Regarding treatment of Taiwanese nationals following forced transfer to China, we have seen mixed reports,” Caster said. “Of concern, there have been cases of forced confessions. In other cases, Taiwanese nationals have been denied visitation or communication with their family members in Taiwan.”

Casper said the group did not come across cases of Taiwanese being sent to China in the last year and warned that the risk for those from the self-ruled island remains.

“No doubt this is not an indication of the trend receding and instead is just a result of COVID,” he said.

Taipei 101 tower, once the world’s tallest building, and the Taipei skyline, are pictured from the top of Elephant Mountain in Taipei, Taiwan, on Jan. 7, 2020. (Carl Court/Getty Images)

International Support

Safeguard Defenders called on the international community to take a stance against China’s current practice against Taiwanese people.

“ U.S. and other governments should make it clear that they will not agree to deport or extradite Taiwanese nationals from their countries to China,” Caster said.

“Beyond Taiwanese nationals, in light of the severity of human rights concerns in China, all countries should declare an immediate moratorium on all extraditions and deportations to China.”

report added that the issue of Taiwan’s sovereignty didn’t even have to come up if governments chose to side with the island.

“This opposition doesn’t even have to wade into the politically charged ‘One China’ narratives, but should be based simply on international norms and states’ obligations,” according to the report.

China sees the self-governing democracy Taiwan as a part of its territory to be united with the mainland, by force if necessary. As a result, the communist regime believes the Taiwan government doesn’t have the right to carry out government-level engagement with other countries or take part in international organizations such as the World Health Organization or the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol).

Many countries, including the United States, hold a “one-China policy,” which asserts that there is only one sovereign state with the name “China,” although that’s different from the “one-China principle” under which the Chinese regime asserts sovereignty over Taiwan.

However, some countries adopt a “one-China” policy that is in line with the position of the CCP. For instance, in 2016, when Kenya deported 45 Taiwanese nationals to China, Nairobi stated that it considered Taiwan part of “one China.” Kenya’s decision drew the praise of the communist regime, applauding Nairobi for upholding the “one-China principle.”

Taiwanese government had tried to intervene before its citizens were sent to China. For instance, in 2017, before Cambodia extradited seven Taiwanese crime suspects to China, Taiwan’s Ministry of Justice tried to negotiate with China’s Ministry of Public Security and Cambodian officials but to no avail, according to the report.

report applauded the decision made by the Czech Supreme Court in April 2020, when it rejected China’s extradition request for eight Taiwanese nationals.

One reason cited by the court in turning down China’s request was that it found China’s diplomatic assurances that the Taiwanese nationals would not be subjected to inhuman treatment “insufficient” and “unreliable.”

Another reason was that the court said it lacked confidence that Czech consular staff in China would have access to the Taiwanese nationals since “right of access is not guaranteed under Chinese law.”

“ Czech High Court decision should stand as global precedent and shape subsequent decisions on the extradition of Taiwanese nationals,” the report stated.

Moving forward, the report asked China to abide by its agreement with Taiwan on law enforcement and judicial cooperation.

Additionally, the international community also “needs to step up” in welcoming Taiwan to take part in international organizations, including Interpol, the report added.

“By nearly all indicators, Taiwan is strong on civil and political rights, Internet freedom, and other key human rights and rule of law metrics,” Caster said.

“Taiwan should be embraced by all democratic governments as an important counter-weight to the repressive spread of the China model, around the region and around the world.”

Pezou : Beijing Pressures Countries to Deport Taiwanese Nationals to China, Report Says