Chinese 'Secret Police Station' Whistleblower Group: "China Commits Illegal Acts in the Name of the Country"

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] Laura Art, Campaign Director of 'Safeguard Defenders,' who exposed the existence of China's secret police stations, pointed out that "China is committing illegal acts in the name of the country."

On the morning of the 3rd, she appeared on CBS's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' and said, "China obviously recognizes that this (secret police station) is illegal. It makes no sense to say they don't know this," adding, "Nevertheless, within the international system or among countries, there is no one who can point this out to China or say 'you are doing wrong'."

Safeguard Defenders revealed that China operates 102 secret police stations called 'Overseas 110 Service Stations' in 53 countries worldwide. These secret police stations have been repatriating dissidents and anti-corruption figures to China since 2014. It is known that there is one such station in South Korea, prompting authorities to investigate the situation.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The number of people repatriated to China through secret police stations abroad reached 230,000 just from the investigation conducted between April and July last year. Director Art explained, "Only about 1% to 7% of these people return through legal processes, such as through embassies or personal investigations, while the majority, over 90%, return through the illegal methods I just mentioned (secret police stations)."

For example, when a judge from the Supreme People's Court of China defected to Canada and publicly criticized Chinese law during the process, Chinese authorities detained his sister, son, wife who was a businesswoman, and the lawyer representing his sister, pressuring them for repatriation by accusing the judge of 'corruption.' However, the judge refused repatriation. Director Art said, "China sends people overseas to request repatriation under the name of voluntary repatriation," adding, "In this process, executions and oppression also occur, and this is one of the most typical cases."

Domestically, a Chinese restaurant in Songpa-gu was suspected of being a secret police station, and recently, the manager Wang Hai-jun held a press conference to clarify the situation. Director Art said, "The important thing is not to focus on a single address or individual and continuously investigate, but to be aware that such activities exist and to conduct ongoing investigations to understand the Chinese government's network," adding, "Personally, publicly, and academically, various exchanges are taking place, and we need to connect all of these and pay closer attention to what is happening among them."