China: Information on illegal movement of people between China (especially from the Fujian Province and Wu KuIsland) and Taiwan before and after June 1989
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 May 1991 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | CHN8593 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, China: Information on illegal movement of people between China (especially from the Fujian Province and Wu KuIsland) and Taiwan before and after June 1989, 1 May 1991, CHN8593, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ac8644.html [accessed 3 November 2019] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
A Fujian provincial service broadcast of 18 June 1989 monitored by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), states that "[t]he airport border check point of Fuzhou [capital of the Fujian Province] armed police has adopted resolute measures to step up checks on documents to stop lawless elements from sneaking out of the country with counterfeit papers, safeguard the country's sovereignty and dignity, and maintain the stability and prosperity of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan." (BBC Summary 20 June 1989). The broadcast charges "lawless elements in the mainland" and "bad elements" in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan with forging "all kind of certificates" including exit and entry visas to facilitate their flight from China (Ibid.). It also mentions the discovery of a ring which was involved in smuggling "mainland girls from Fujian's Pingtan to Taiwan by fishing boat to engage in prostitution." (Ibid.).
According to a Reuters report, "[t]wo Chinese students who claim they were blacklisted for participating in China's pro-democracy movement have been smuggled into Taiwan, the first such refugees to reach the island." (Reuters 20 Sept. 1989, 1).
Another Reuters report maintains that the Taiwanese police arrested two Chinese claiming to be wanted for their pro-democracy activities after they had entered Taiwan illegally (Reuters 1 Nov. 1989).
A report carried by Central News Agency holds that a Taiwanese sound music company has decided "to appoint Chang Kang, a mainland dissident who was smuggled into Taiwan with two other activists on 29 October, publisher of the 'Blue China' magazine" (Central News Agency 16 Nov. 1989).
A Reuters report states that 12 Chinese defectors entered Taiwan via South Korea after the Taiwanese government had granted them political asylum (Reuters 13 Dec. 1989, 1). The report holds that the defectors "paid 10,000 Chinese yuan ([$]2,700 U.S.) for the boat which left China's eastern province of Jiangsu on 15 November. They had planned to head directly for Taiwan, but were forced to South Korea by a typhoon." (Ibid.). The report further adds that the Taiwanese government passed a law in September 1989 which allows approved Chinese dissidents to settle in Taiwan (Ibid., 2).
According to the United Press International, Zhang Kang (former Deputy Director of the Liaison Office of China's Institute of Economic Restructuring) and two unspecified Chinese were smuggled into Taiwan in October 1989 (United Press International 30 Dec. 1989, 1, 2).
A Reuters report mentions that despite a change in Taiwanese entry laws to give refuge to "'genuine' pro-democracy activists" in the aftermath of the Tiananmen Square massacre, Taiwanese standards are "strict, and the few self-professed dissidents who did request asylum were sent back with other illegal immigrants who tried to sneak onto the island to find jobs." (Reuters 28 Jan. 1991, 1).
Additional information on the subject is currently unavailable to the IRBDC.
Attachments:
BBC Summary of world Broadcasts. 20 June 1989. "Other Reports; Fuzhou Airport Steps up on Documents." (NEXIS)
Central News Agency. 16 November 1989. "M'Land Dissident May Serve As 'Blue China Magazine Publisher." (NEXIS)
Reuters. 1 November 1989. "Two Chinese Saying They are Dissidents Sneak into Taiwan." (NEXIS)
Reuters. 20 September 1989. "Doubts Grow over Taiwan's First Chinese Student Refugees." pp. 1, 2. (NEXIS)
Reuters. 13 December 1989. "Chinese Pro-democracy Activists Grilled by Taiwan Press." pp. 1, 2. (NEXIS)
Reuters. 28 January 1991. "Taiwan Calls on China to Free Pro-democracy Activists." pp. 1, 2. (NEXIS)
The United Press International. 30 December 1990. "Exiled Chinese Leaders Urge Release of Democracy Activists." pp. 1, 2. (NEXIS)
