China urged to protect interests of Taiwanese facing fraud probe

Taipei, Sept. 23 (CNA) Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Monday urged Chinese authorities to protect the legal interests of a Taiwanese man who is being investigated in China for his alleged role in a fraud case.

In a statement, the MAC, the government agency that handles cross-Taiwan Strait affairs, said China should observe the principle of presumption of innocence as it investigates the Taiwanese man to protect his legal rights.

The MAC's statement came after China's Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) said in a news release that 22-year-old Kuo Yu-hsuan (郭宇軒) is under investigation in China for his alleged involvement in fraud.

The TAO said the Chinese authorities will protect Kuo's interests under the law, but it did not provide any details on the case or the actions he was allegedly involved in nor did they disclose where he was being held.

Kuo went missing soon after he arrived in Shanghai on Aug. 27, and his friends and relatives have not been able to make contact with him since then.

The MAC expressed dissatisfaction with the TAO as the Chinese agency did not disclose Kuo's situation until almost one month after he went missing.

The MAC also blamed the Chinese authorities for not informing Taiwan that Kuo's personal freedom had been restricted. It said the TAO failed to proactively inform Taiwan of Kuo's situation until people in Taiwan expressed concerns about his safety.

On Sept. 19, MAC deputy head and spokesperson Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said in a daily news briefing that Kuo went to China with his friends.

After losing contact with Kuo, his family reported him missing to police, while Taiwan's Straits Exchange Foundation wrote a letter to its Chinese counterpart -- the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits -- amid concerns about his safety.

Kuo's older sister said on social media that her brother told his family he had arrived safely in Shanghai, but his family had not been able to make contact with him by phone or online messenger services after that.

She said her family had not given up its efforts to find him, and hoped he will soon be back to Taiwan safely while also realizing that the worst-case scenario could also occur.

Kuo's sister also told reporters that she did not rule out the possibility that her brother was defrauded to join a fraud ring in China or was simply arrested while he was just visiting there.

His relatives and friends had posted an online notice trying to find him, but it turned out that Kuo was being investigated by Chinese authorities.