Amnesty International Taiwan is calling on China to let Taiwanese businessman Lee Meng-chu come home. Lee was arrested and imprisoned for filming Chinese troops in Shenzhen in 2019, while in Hong Kong, just kilometers away, protesters were calling for democratic reform.
Lee finished his 22-month prison sentence for espionage last year. But China’s Taiwan Affairs Office says he still has to serve a “supplementary punishment” of two years’ “deprivation of political rights”, meaning Lee cannot vote or take part in elections.
It is unclear why Beijing is not allowing Lee Meng-chu to return to Taiwan, when just weeks ago, authorities let another Taiwanese prisoner fly home. Lee Ming-che, no relation of Lee Meng-chu, was also serving a two-year supplementary sentence.
Amnesty International Taiwan Secretary-General Chiu I-ling is accusing China of violating Lee Meng-chu’s right to freedom of thought, expression and association. She says Beijing should let Lee come home immediately.