"6-Year Sentence for Criticizing Xi Jinping": Chinese Scholar Requests Asylum in Taiwan, But Faces Rejection

A Chinese historian and former lecturer for China Central Television (CCTV) has reportedly had his request for political asylum in Taiwan rejected after claiming he faced severe crackdowns by Chinese authorities.

According to Taiwanese media outlets such as the Liberty Times and China Times on November 4, Cheng Wan-jun, a Chinese national who previously appeared as a lecturer on CCTV's Legal Lecture program, arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on a transit flight from Thailand on November 2. He then used X to appeal to the Taiwanese government for temporary humanitarian asylum and protection.

In a video posted on X, Cheng claimed, "After criticizing Chinese President Xi Jinping as a 'monarch of a ruined nation' in 2019, I was sentenced to six years in prison following someone's report, and was released upon completing my sentence in 2005."

He added, "I left China and fled to Thailand to publish works detailing my prison experiences, and feeling recent threats to my safety, I submitted a risk assessment report regarding repatriation to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) office in Bangkok in mid-October. However, following remarks from officials that my safety could not be guaranteed while waiting in Thailand for third-country asylum, I decided to consider seeking asylum in Taiwan."

However, Taiwanese authorities did not accept his request and repatriated him to Thailand.

Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council, the government agency handling mainland China affairs, stated in a release on November 4 that "Cheng's request for temporary stay after wandering off his flight route did not comply with the regulations and processing procedures of the Taiwan government," adding that "the competent authorities repatriated him back to his previous departure point of Bangkok, Thailand, in accordance with the law."

The Mainland Affairs Council explained, "We cannot verify whether Cheng's claims of persecution by the Chinese Communist Party are true," noting that "several similar cases occur every year."

Expressing disappointment and anger over the decision by Taiwanese authorities, Cheng stated his hope to "seek asylum in a third country as soon as possible."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.