Hong Kong civil servant denied residency in Taiwan over ‘security risks’ suspended from job – reports
Hong Kong Free Press
A Hong Kong civil servant who mounted a legal challenge against Taiwan authorities’ decision to deny him residency has apparently disappeared from a directory of government employees, with local media citing sources to report that he had been suspended from his post.
A civil servant with the surname Chan, whose name was the same as that included in the Taiwan court’s judgement, could still be found in a list of government employees last Wednesday, according to internet archive tool Wayback Machine.
The development came after the Taipei High Administrative Court in July dismissed Chan’s legal bid against Taiwan immigration authorities’ decision to deny him the right to live on the self-ruled island. The civil servant, who has a Taiwanese partner, applied for residency in Taiwan in November 2022. He had hoped to spend his weekends in Taiwan and return to Hong Kong during the weekdays so that he could continue working.
The island’s National Immigration Agency rejected Chan’s application, however, because of perceived “security risks” that he could “harm national interests, public safety and public order, and engage in terrorism.”
The judge said Chan’s role with the Hong Kong government meant there was a higher chance that he could be a spy for Beijing. The judge also echoed the immigration agency in saying that Chan had signed an oath of allegiance to the Hong Kong government, referring to a rule introduced after the enactment of the Beijing-imposed national security law.
When HKFP checked on Monday, Chan’s name was no longer listed as an employee of the Housing Department. It had been replaced by two civil servants instead, with the directory saying they were “doubling up” for the role.
Local media outlets HK01 and Sing Pao Daily News cited sources saying that Chan had been suspended from his position.
HKFP has reached out to the Housing Department for comment.
‘Infiltration’
According to the judgement, Chan had argued that his job involved overseeing engineering works of public housing construction projects and was completely unrelated to “political organisations.”
The oath he had taken swearing allegiance to the Hong Kong government was compulsory for all civil servants, Chan had added.
The Taiwan court ruled in favour of the island’s immigration department, saying that there were grounds for believing that Chan could endanger Taiwan’s interests and public order. As a Hong Kong civil servant, he would have to support the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) acts, the judge wrote. China’s military has repeatedly made incursions into the Taiwan Strait and fired missiles, posing a threat to the island, the judge said.
The judge added that, compared to a non-Hong Kong civil servant, there was a higher possibility of Chan engaging in “infiltration or intelligence work” for the CCP.
Beijing considers Taiwan a renegade province to be unified with the mainland, by force if necessary. However, a majority of Taiwanese reject calls for unification, preferring to maintain the island’s status quo.
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