Taiwan blasts China for airing spy 'confession', calls it violation of legal process

Taiwan blasted China for entrapment and alleged manipulation after Chinese state television aired the supposed confession of a Taiwanese citizen arrested in Shenzhen. The state television showed a documentary on October 11 in which Morrison Lee appeared to be confessing that he went to Hong Kong to support anti-government protesters.

“I’m very sorry. I did many bad, wrong things in the past, perhaps harming the motherland and the country,” Lee said.

Calling the show “complete nonsense”, Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council accused Chinese authorities deliberately damaging relations. According to a report by South China Morning Post, the council said that putting Lee on television was in violation of the legal process and urged Chinese authorities to stop trying to frame Taiwanese citizens. The showed was aired just a day after Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen urged her Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, to "deescalate tensions" and start "meaningful dialogue".

Read: Taiwan Calls On China To Start Meaningful Dialogue On Cross-strait Stability

Read: Tajinder Bagga Trolls China After Taiwan-plastering Its Embassy: 'I Stand With One China'

During her address on Taiwan's national day, Tsai said that the key issue is to discuss cross-strait relations and steps to ensure both countries can live in peace and co-exist based on mutual respect and understanding. Tsai highlighted Xi's speech at the UN General Assembly, where he had said that the mainland will never seek hegemony.

Beijing has become more assertive on the reunification of Taiwan with China under “one country, two systems” which has threatened Taiwan’s claim of sovereignty. The self-governing island republic considers itself as sovereign while China claims the province as Beijing’s territory under its one-China policy and has been pushing to implement the Hong Kong system in Taiwan. 

Taiwan's position on Hong Kong affairs

Before the coronavirus outbreak, Taiwan was witnessing an influx from Hong Kong and the permanent as well as short-term residency shot up to 30 per cent in a period of nine months. Taiwan has repeatedly clarified that it has no intention to interfere in the internal affairs of Hong Kong but simultaneously showed concerns about police using “disproportionate force” against the anti-government protesters.

Read: Taiwan Redesigns Passport To Assert Independence, Shrinks Words 'Republic Of China'

Read: Posters Wishing Taiwan On Its National Day Come Up Near Chinese Embassy, NDMC Removes Them