‘Blacklist’ mulled of triads, officers over HK protests

EXISTING MECHANISMS: The nation has rules that regulate the arrival and departure of foreigners, a Mainland Affairs Council official told reporters

By Chung Li-hua / Staff reporter





The government would assess the possibility of blacklisting Hong Kong triads and Hong Kong Police officers that have persecuted pro-democracy advocates, and banning them from entering the nation, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Deputy Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday.

Chiu made the statement at a news conference after Hong Kong Higher Institutions International Affairs delegation spokesperson Sunny Cheung (張崑陽) said in an article published on Wednesday on Stand News, a Hong Kong-based pro-democracy online news site, that the council was creating a blacklist.

“The nation has already stipulated rules to regulate the arrival and departure of foreigners. Apart from improving the existing mechanism, we would also consider petitions from Hong Kong pro-democracy advocates,” Chiu said. “It has been the government’s position to support democratic development in Hong Kong.”

Mainland Affairs Council Deputy Minister Chiu Chui-cheng speaks at a news conference at the council’s headquarters in Taipei yesterday. Photo: CNA

“We have on multiple occasions urged the Chinese Communist Party and the Hong Kong government to listen to the voice of the people in Hong Kong and respond positively to their petitions so that Hong Kong society can quickly return to normal,” he added.

Chiu was also asked about the case of Hong Konger Chan Tong-kai (陳同佳), who is suspected of killing his pregnant girlfriend, Poon Hiu-wing (潘曉穎), during a visit to Taiwan in February 2018 before returning to the territory.

He reportedly said last year that he would be willing to turn himself in to Taiwanese authorities.

Chiu said that the key is whether the Hong Kong government feels a responsibility to hand the suspect over and whether Chan truly wanted to face punishment under Taiwan’s judicial system.

Poon was killed in Taiwan, so her family members, as victims of a crime, are entitled to apply for compensation within two years of when the crime was committed, but the application deadline is next month, Chiu said.

The government has thus far not received a request for compensation from Poon’s family, a source within the government said.

Asked about a civic group’s plans to hold a demonstration on Sunday to protest the government’s failure to assist Hong Kongers seeking asylum in Taiwan, Chiu said that the Act Governing Relations with Hong Kong and Macau (香港澳門關係條例) serves as the legal basis for the government’s humanitarian assistance to Hong Kongers.

“We are willing to explain to civic groups that might not be familiar with the law,” he said.