Hong Kong Bookseller Who Was ‘Disappeared’ By Chinese Authorities Tells Of What Happened
By Tyler Durden
It's no secret that the Chinese government has no problem making people disappear that are causing a problem for the communist regime – we have written about the topic many times (here, here, and here).
However, the latest case of a disappearance (that we're aware of) is most interesting. Beginning late last year, five booksellers from the shop Causeway Bay Books (which among other things sells books containing political gossip) in Hong Kong went missing, and all of them later surfaced in China in police custody for illegally trading banned books in mainland China. All have returned to Hong Kong except one, and the most recent to be returned home is Lam Wing-kee, who was reportedly back in Hong Kong earlier this week. At the time, Lam didn't have anything to say about what happened, “he refused to disclose other details regarding his absence” the police said.
It appears that now, Lam has a lot to say about what happened. In a televised news conference, Lam said he was detained by Chinese authorities while visiting the mainland city of Shenzhen, across the border from Hong Kong, and his travel documents were confiscated. Lam was then blindfolded, handcuffed, and taken by train to the eastern city of Ningbo about 13 hours away where he would spend the next five months in a 200 to 300 square foot cell before being moved to an apartment. Lam would be watched 24 hours a day by Chinese guards, and even something as simple as brushing his teeth would be monitored. A string was even tied to the toothbrush for fear Lam may want to harm himself. Lam said the he was detained by a little known “Central Examination Group” of the Chinese Communist Party, a special task force that reports to senior Beijing leaders.
“I couldn't call my family. I could only look up to the sky, all alone.”, “they wanted to lock you up until you go mad” Lam said.
Lam said he had to sign away his right to a lawyer and right to contact his family, and was subsequently questioned 20 to 30 times about his role in Hong Kong's publishing industry. At one point, Lam said that he was forced to sign a confession that books were unlawfully sold in order to harm the Chinese society. The confession also was also written to incriminate his colleague (who also has been disappeared, and has yet to return).
“It was a show, and I accept it. I had to follow the script. If I did not follow it strictly, they would ask for a retake” Lam said regarding the confession.
Chinese authorities thought that Lam would continue to cooperate, so Lam was apparently allowed to travel back to Hong Kong after promising to return to the mainland with a hard drive full of information on customers. Instead, Lam held a press conference, and said “I dare not go back. I don't plan on setting foot in mainland China ever again.”
The details provided …read more
Source: Hong Kong Bookseller Who Was ‘Disappeared’ By Chinese Authorities Tells Of What Happened
