South Korea detains dissident who fled China in rubber boat

Key developments are emerging from the global stage. South Korea detains dissident who fled China in rubber boat39 minutes ago Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleKelly NgFrontline DefendersDong Guangping, an activist and former police officer, washed up on Korean shores on Monday nightA Chinese dissident who fled his country on a rubber boat has been detained in South Korea after spending hours at sea. Dong Guangping, a former police officer and human rights activist, was found in Korean waters on Monday night. South Korea's coast guard told the that Dong is under investigation for suspected immigration violations and his case will be referred to prosecutors.

The 68-year-old had been jailed in China several times for his activism, such as taking part in events to commemorate the Tiananmen Square crackdown. Dong had escaped China at least three times previously, but was sent back each time. When asked about Monday's incident China's foreign affairs ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said she had not aware of the case.

The Details

Dong had set out from Weifang, a city in the central Shandong province, in a rubber boat with an engine, according to Canada-based activist Sheng Xue who posted on X saying she had spoken to Dong after he reached South Korea. He had told her that he had spent more than 30 hours at sea, and was "fainting" from exhaustion by the time he reached the waters off Taean, a county on South Korea's western coast. South Korea's coast guard said they rescued him after receiving a report from a fishing boat that had spotted Dong.

Dong had previously discussed his escape plan with Sheng Xue, she said, but she had told him it would be too dangerous. "He ended up really doing it... Dong Guangping is too tenacious, too brave," she said, adding that he had planned his escape with "meticulous checks and preparation".

Human Rights in China (HRIC), an NGO based in New York, has urged Seoul to "uphold humanitarian principles and international human rights obligations" by not handing Dong over to China, where he "faces a grave risk of persecution and torture". It also called on Korean authorities to allow Dong to seek political asylum, or help facilitate his safe passage to Canada where his family members live. "That a man nearing seventy years old was driven to cross open seas in a small inflatable boat is itself a devastating indictment of China's human rights situation," HRIC said.

What Experts Say

Multiple escapesIn 1999, Dong was fired from the police force after he signed a petition to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the brutal Tiananmen crackdown on pro-democracy protesters. Then in 2001, he was imprisoned for three years for "inciting subversion of state power". He was jailed again in 2014 for participating in another Tiananmen commemoration event, according to Amnesty International.

He first escaped China in October 2015 when he travelled to Bangkok with his wife and daughter, where they were granted refugee status by the United Nations and approved for resettlement in Canada.

The story has become one of the most prominent items on the global agenda.