In Hong Kong: 5 booksellers known for publications critical of the Chinese government kidnapped

Five members of Hong Kong’s publishing industry have gone missing since October, and there is growing suspicion that Chinese security agents have kidnapped them.

Five members of Hong Kong’s publishing industry have gone missing since October, and there is growing suspicion that Chinese security agents have kidnapped them.

The missing include Gui Minhai, a publisher known for his exposés of the lives of senior Communist party leaders, who was taken from his seafront holiday home in Thailand on 17 October.

 

Last Wednesday, Lee Bo, Gui’s 65-year-old business partner, also went missing in Hong Kong, prompting protests from pro-democracy politicians who fear Beijing is responsible for what they call a wave of kidnappings.

4 associates involved in publishing or selling literature critical of Beijing have also gone missing in mysterious circumstances over the past few months.

The suspected abductions have sent shockwaves through Hong Kong publishing circles, where complaints over increasing censorship and pressure from Beijing are common.

They have also sparked protests from pro-democracy groups, who see Lee Bo’s apparent snatching as the latest sign of Beijing’s meddling in the former colony, which is supposed to enjoy far greater political freedoms than the mainland.

 

Senior Hong Kong officials appealed for more information from the public and said Hong Kong police had been deepening their probe, including reviewing CCTV footage and interviewing more people.

"We should give time to the police to conduct their investigation," said acting security secretary John Lee.

The booksellers all worked for the same Hong Kong-based publishing house and are feared to have been detained by Chinese authorities, adding to growing unease that freedoms in the semi-autonomous city are being eroded.