At least two undisclosed “police stations” have allegedly been established in the Netherlands by the Chinese government.
Dutch media discovered proof that “overseas service stations,” which claim to offer diplomatic services, are being used to muzzle Chinese dissidents in Europe.
A spokesperson for the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the unauthorized police outposts were illegal.
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has denied the Dutch charges.
A report titled Chinese Transnational Policing Gone Wild by the Spanish NGO Safeguard Defenders prompted the investigation.
According to the organization, the public security bureaus of two Chinese provinces have built 54 “overseas police service centers” in 21 countries spanning five continents. The majority of them are located in Europe, with nine in Spain and four in Italy. In the United Kingdom, it was discovered in London and Glasgow.
The teams were founded allegedly to combat international crime and perform administrative tasks, such as the renewal of Chinese driver’s licenses. In practice, according to to Safeguard Defenders, they conduct “persuasion operations” designed to coerce those suspected of speaking out against the Chinese state to return home.
RTL News and the investigative journalism platform Follow the Money reported on Wang Jingyu, a Chinese dissident who claimed Chinese police were pursuing him in the Netherlands.
Wang told Dutch media that he received a phone call from someone purporting to be from one of these stations earlier this year. During the chat, he stated that he had been advised to return to China “work out my problems. And to consider my parents “.
Since then, he has outlined a systematic campaign of intimidation and harassment, which he says is orchestrated by operatives of the Chinese government.
The Chinese embassy informed RTL News that it was unaware of the existence of such police stations in reaction to the findings.
Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Maxime Hovenkamp told the BBC: “These actions were not communicated to the Dutch government through diplomatic channels with the Chinese government. That is unlawful.”
She stated that it would need to conduct an investigation and determine the proper response. “Extremely concerning is the fact that a Chinese national was supposedly subjected to intimidation and harassment in the Netherlands. The police are considering his protection options “She continued.
Embassies and consulates typically handle services such as passport renewals and visa applications. In these areas, the Vienna Convention, to which both the Netherlands and China are parties, governs diplomatic relations.
By evading national jurisdictions and local law, policing outposts such as the ones China is accused of operating could compromise the territorial integrity of a host nation.
Wang Wenbin, a spokeswoman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated on Wednesday that what had been portrayed as police stations overseas “are service stations for Chinese nationals abroad,” and that China fully respected the legal sovereignty of other nations.
He told reporters that many Chinese were unable to return to China because of the coronavirus “Relevant local governments have established online service platforms to aid citizens in overcoming obstacles. These services are primarily intended for physical exams and driver’s license changes.”
Safeguard Defenders stated that China’s policing methods were “problematic” since they targeted people without conclusively establishing criminal ties or adhering to due process in host nations.
This is accomplished mostly through coercing or threatening the family members of accused fugitives to “persuade” them to come home, according to the organization.
China established a national Anti-Telecom and Online Fraud Law on September 2, claiming extraterritorial jurisdiction against all Chinese nationals suspected of committing various sorts of fraud.
In principle, the new legislation, coupled with the presence of Chinese police troops abroad, leaves dissidents with nowhere to hide.
There is no pressure on the Dutch government to ensure that critics of the Chinese government who are granted asylum are safeguarded and that Dutch law prevails in the Netherlands.
