3 weeks ago
Yang Liwei, 56, is fighting to enactment successful South Korea arsenic a governmental refugee, fleeing persecution successful China. He is presently astatine Jeju International Airport, wherever he continues to people his disapproval of nan Chinese Communist Party. Photo courtesy of nan Liwei
JEJU ISLAND, South Korea, April 25 (UPI) -- A Chinese dissident who was imprisoned successful his autochthonal state for much than 2 years connected charges of inciting subversion of nan authorities has been denied asylum successful South Korea, and says he tin not beryllium repatriated nether threat of terrible governmental persecution.
Yang Liwei is being held astatine Jeju International Airport, a tourism hub that welcomes millions to South Korea's confederate edifice land of Jeju each year. The 56-year-old has been successful a unafraid room successful customs since landing April 12 aft fleeing China by air.
He whitethorn beryllium destined to enactment location for months arsenic he appeals nan government's denial of his exertion for asylum. Facing deportation, he fears returning to a Chinese situation for his online governmental speech, and he is asking nan South Korean authorities to protect him nether U.N. laws safeguarding governmental refugees.
"Over nan years, I person been banned, deleted, silenced and warned countless times, but I cannot extremity yearning for democracy, state and nan norm of law," he told UPI via email. "I dream that my descendants tin unrecorded successful a nine without fear."
According to Human Rights Watch, China operates "one of nan world's astir stringent censorship regimes" and quality authorities defenders and authorities critics proceed to look persecution.
Chinese tribunal documents nan provided to UPI, show he was arrested July 24, 2018, connected charges of "inciting subversion of authorities power" for comments he made online.
The tribunal documents authorities he ran an relationship connected nan level past known arsenic Twitter, now X, connected which he "continuously posted aliases forwarded attacks connected nan statement and authorities leaders." He besides ran 5 WeChat groups "discussing extremist ideas." When those accounts were taken down, he created others, nan documents said.
"This tribunal believes that nan suspect nan Liwei utilized Twitter, WeChat and different platforms to dispersed attacks connected statement and nationalist leaders, arsenic good arsenic nan governmental strategy of China," it said. "His actions earnestly undermined nan image of nan statement and authorities organs."
Yang said that during his two-year, six-month situation sentence, he was tortured, prisoners were ordered to hit him, his ribs were surgery and guards threatened to withhold aesculapian curen and fto him die.
He said he suffered from malnutrition and lumbar disc herniation, which would require room pursuing his merchandise connected Jan. 23, 2021.
He told UPI he attempted to participate Jeju arsenic a tourer pinch plans to later use for asylum but was detained by customs. As he was denied introduction and awaiting deportation, he applied for exile position connected nan grounds that his online governmental reside made it vulnerable for him to return to China.
On April 18, his exertion was rejected.
According to nan migration documents nan provided to UPI, he grounded to meet nan criteria of a exile arsenic he did not look to person immoderate issues pinch leaving China, he deceived South Korean separator officials by first stating he was visiting for tourism purposes and that he sought asylum 3 years aft being released from prison.
The migration archive states that it is "unreasonable" to opportunity his flight was nether urgent threat, while suggesting nan information whitethorn person been economic.
His Notice of Non-referral of Refugee Status states that his exertion was rejected because "there are important grounds to respect nan applicant arsenic a threat to nan information and nationalist bid of nan Republic of Korea," and that his ground for applying for exile position "is recovered to beryllium intelligibly groundless."
The Ministry of Justice has yet to respond to UPI's petition for comment.
Yang defended nan lapse of 3 years from erstwhile he was released from situation to nan clip he fled to Jeju by stating he was incapable to person a passport from nan Chinese authorities until past year. He besides underwent and had to retrieve from spinal surgery, and it was aft receiving nan recreation archive that he began to scheme his escape.
He continued that he besides maintained his online disapproval of nan Chinese Communist Party aft his merchandise from prison, but was often summoned by section officials and was forced to move distant from his location to a distant organization to proceed his activism.
He said that aft buying his summons for Jeju, his section Public Security Bureau contacted him. At nan office, officials told him he required a stamp to time off nan country, which he would not beryllium fixed because of his criminal record.
He said he went to nan airdrome anyhow pinch "a try-it-out attitude."
There, he and his electronics -- which he scrubbed of each pictures, texts, accounts and apps -- were searched, and he was capable to committee his formation to Jeju.
"As I traveled, each nan measurement until nan level landed, my bosom hung dense because I knew that until I entered successful Jeju I wasn't safe, and I could beryllium sent backmost astatine immoderate time," he said.
He said he chose Jeju arsenic it is visa-free for each but 23 countries, including China, whose nationals relationship for nan largest number of world visitors to nan island. According to government statistics, of nan astir 204,000 world visitors to Jeju during nan first 2 months of nan year, much than 176,000 were Chinese.
Yang has been receiving assistance successful his conflict from Rev. Choe Hwang-gyu, nan laminitis of nan Seoul Chinese Church who has been helping Chinese dissidents fly to South Korea for much than 2 decades.
Choe said nan is seeking to record an management suit to enactment successful South Korea and that nan Public Interest Law Center has taken up his case.
The Public Interest Law Center has yet to respond to requests for confirmation and comment, though UPI has seen emails confirming its willingness to assistance Yang.
"Yang Liwei is simply a exile and should beryllium protected nether nan world exile protection law," Choe told UPI successful an email, referring to nan Geneva Convention Related to nan Status of Refugees. "As we each know, China is simply a state wherever group for illustration nan Liwei cannot live."
South Korea is known for having a debased exile acceptance rate, which sits astatine 2.1% for nan first 3 months of this year, according to the astir caller statistics from nan South Korean government.
Last year, South Korea had an acceptance complaint of 1.8%, pursuing a 3.6% complaint successful 2022 and a 1.1% successful some 2021 and 2020.
Since 1994 erstwhile it began accepting asylum-seekers, of nan much than 53,000 completed exile applications, 1,471 group person been recognized arsenic refugees pinch different 2,625 receiving humanitarian residence permits.
Choe said nan obstruction for Chinese asylum seekers is moreover higher.
"No matter really clear nan evidence, nan Korean authorities has ne'er fixed nan Chinese who escaped to Korea exile status," he said.
Choe added he believes nan logic for refusing Chinese asylum seekers is political.
"I deliberation that nan divided Korea ever cares astir nan Chinese authorities because it needs China's thief for reunification and bid pinch North Korea," he said.
"That's a pity."
From a unafraid room successful customs astatine nan Jeju airport, nan has been utilizing his iPhone to people a dependable watercourse of disapproval of China and updates connected his business to X.
Once utilizing a pseudonym -- "Ecclesiastes," Yang's favourite section of nan Bible -- and a floor plan image of U.S. President Joe Biden -- "I don't deliberation he would mind," he said -- nan now posts from X pinch a floor plan that boasts his existent sanction and a image of him sunglassed and smiling.
"I utilized a clone sanction online, but aft coming to Jeju I changed it to my existent sanction because this spot is not nether nan jurisdiction of nan Chinese Communist Party," he said.
"Using my existent sanction and photograph to knock nan Chinese Communist Party for nan first clip felt great. I yet consciousness for illustration I don't person to beryllium acrophobic of them arresting me. At slightest for now, I americium safe, and I tin speak freely."
