Hong Kong bookseller who disappeared from Thailand held in China

[webfact]

Hong Kong Bookseller Who Disappeared From Thailand Held in China

- Gui Minhai makes confession on China's state-run TV Network
- Gui one of five men linked to Hong Kong publisher to vanish

HONG KONG: -- Gui Minhai, one of the five missing men linked to a Hong Kong store that sells books critical of China’s Communist Party elite, is in custody on the mainland after surrendering to police over a fatal traffic accident that occurred more than a decade ago, the official Xinhua News Agency reported.

Gui was wanted in China after being convicted of killing a college student in a drunk driving accident in 2004 and he turned himself into the police in October, Xinhua reported.

He was convicted for his role in the accident and initially given a two-year suspended sentence, but the suspension was revoked in 2006, Xinhua said. Gui made a confession broadcast on state-controlled television network CCTV.

Full story: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-01-17/hong-kong-bookseller-who-disappeared-from-thailand-held-in-china

-- BloombergBusiness 2016-01-18

[leeneeds]

Now your free , now your not ( revoked )

Be careful who you criticise , this sounds familiar,

[chainarong]

One could be excused for thinking that Thailand is dealing big time with a country with no morals ,no respect for human rights, no freedom of speech , freedom to travel , and you'd wounder why this persons family wasn't notified in HK some weeks back when he was first arrested, but hey you'd be wrong, for Thailand is only one of many countries who like to preach, however don't mind dealing with the devil when it suits them , nice countries like the US , OZ NZ, UK , Ca etc, the so called western world , most of the world deals in some way with China , makes you think what morals our countries actually do have , then again when it comes down to it, the mighty dollar rules the day, in everyone's case.........................................

[oneday]

Gui was wanted in China after being convicted of killing a college student in a drunk driving accident in 2004 and he turned himself into the police in October, Xinhua reported.

Sure, totally believable..............NOT!

[sharecropper]

And about his abduction from his Naklua condo and being smuggled out of Thailand?

[leeneeds]

Gui was wanted in China after being convicted of killing a college student in a drunk driving accident in 2004 and he turned himself into the police in October, Xinhua reported.

Sure, totally believable..............NOT!

He appeared , believable ..............turned himself in !.......... unbelievable !

[spidermike007]

Be afraid. Be very afraid of the CCP. They are heinous, foul, corrupt, without any shred of morals or any concept of what internationally acceptable behavior even looks like. They do as they please, when and where they want. And they have an nearly unlimited budget for their spy operations. They are the worlds greatest hackers, they spy on nearly every country, and they have an open door policy with Thailand, who does their bidding, as they ask. If they order something, Thailand complies. Without question. Yes Master.

The long term intentions of the CCP are positively foul, and heinous. Be very afraid.

[webfact]

China: Missing HK book publisher confesses to hit-and-run

BEIJING (AP) — A Hong Kong book publisher whose disappearance sparked international interest voluntarily surrendered months ago to Chinese mainland authorities, state media said Sunday.

Gui Minhai is one of five missing people who are associated with the publisher Mighty Current, which specializes in gossipy books on political scandals involving China's Communist leaders and other sensitive topics that are banned in the mainland.

Their disappearances raised concerns Beijing is eroding the "one country, two systems" principle that has preserved freedom of the press and other rights in Hong Kong since China gained control of the city from Britain in 1997.

The official Xinhua News Agency reported that Gui said while in detention that he surrendered in October, 10 years after he fled China after killing a woman while driving drunk. The report did not say if he was facing trial nor did it address the other disappearances.

Gui's friends have suspected he was abducted for political reasons by Chinese agents from his apartment in Pattaya, Thailand, and smuggled into China. He is a naturalized Swedish citizen, and his disappearance prompted questions from the Swedish Embassy.

In the purported confession, Gui said he did not want any more "malicious media hype" over his case or any further assistance from Sweden.

Earlier this month, a letter surfaced in which one of the men, British citizen Lee Bo, said he went to mainland China to assist an unspecified investigation. His wife then dropped a missing persons report on him, saying she believed he went to China voluntarily.

In recent years China has stepped up its efforts to repatriate overseas fugitives, mostly Communist Party officials wanted on corruption charges. But its increasingly bold overseas operations have alarmed governments including the Australia and the United States.


-- (c) Associated Press 2016-01-18

[leeneeds]

I remember a few years ago Mossad doing the same sort of cloke and dagger operations "all be if for different reasons" How many countries have these secret capabilities to remove people from their abodes, and have them turn up in different locations , and some how a changed attitude,

USA, UK, China , Israel, Iran, the list is long and i am sure you can add on countries,

[bangon04]

Rendition US style........but when the Chinese do it it is somehow more unethical.

and yes it does appear that Thailand rolls over whenever the PRC wishes to tickle its tummy......

[elgordo38]

One could be excused for thinking that Thailand is dealing big time with a country with no morals ,no respect for human rights, no freedom of speech , freedom to travel , and you'd wounder why this persons family wasn't notified in HK some weeks back when he was first arrested, but hey you'd be wrong, for Thailand is only one of many countries who like to preach, however don't mind dealing with the devil when it suits them , nice countries like the US , OZ NZ, UK , Ca etc, the so called western world , most of the world deals in some way with China , makes you think what morals our countries actually do have , then again when it comes down to it, the mighty dollar rules the day, in everyone's case.........................................

They needed time to work him over with a rubber hose to show him the error of his ways and trot him out with trumped up charges. Yes dealing with the devil is correct but profit and greed trumps everything else. We are the worst part of the equation because we actually know how evil they are.

[FloridaExport]

It appears there are three possibilities here:

1. He was kidnapped and taken to China without the knowledge of the Thai government.

Can you imagine how angry Thailand would be with China? That would be a huge loss of face and show tremendous disrespect.

2. He was kidnapped and taken to China with the knowledge of the Thai government.

Pretty scary to think that the Thai government might knowingly let people with European passports be abducted from their country.

3. He snuck out of Thailand and turned himself in to China.

In this scenario, we have to believe he bypassed Thai border check points in an effort to secretly get to China to turn himself in. This is another loss of face for Thailand, as it makes their border security look like crap.

All of these scenarios seem impossible to me. I wonder if there is something I'm missing...

[jesimps]

Why do people always have to make comparisons with other countries to try to make what Thailand does seem ok. Two wrongs do not make a right.

[Ulic]

Nobody actually believes this fiction do they.