Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council says Beijing has not given any concrete evidence to support the allegations against Li Ming-che
Authorities on the mainland have officially arrested Taiwanese human rights activist Li Ming-che on charges of subversion, in a case observers say will entrench a cross-strait stand-off. Li, who has been held by authorities since he entered the mainland from Macau on March 19, could become the first Taiwanese to be charged with the crime, which comes with a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. “With the approval of prosecution authorities, Taiwan resident Li Ming-che was recently arrested by security agencies in Hunan province on suspicion of subverting state power, ” said An Fengshan, spokesman for the State Council’s Taiwan Affairs Office. An said that since 2012, Li had frequently visited the mainland and collaborated with individuals to set up illegal organisations, and to organise and carry out seditious activities to try to overthrow the political system. “Li and others have confessed that they had engaged in activities endangering national security, ” he said. Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council said Beijing failed to provide any concrete evidence that Li was involved in any subversion. “Such allegations not only fail to convince the Taiwanese public, but also international groups concerned about the case, ” the council said. It urged mainland authorities to release any evidence immediately and allow Li’s relatives to visit him on the mainland in line with a cross-strait agreement on fighting crime. Li, 42, a rights activist and a former employee of Taiwan’s independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party, went missing on March 19 immediately after he entered Zhuhai from Macau.
