Political exiled Chinese dissident Zhou Junyi was arrested by local Thai police about four months ago for visa violations in Thailand, facing the risk of deportation, which has caught the continuous attention of the overseas democracy movement. This incident is considered one of the cases of cross-border suppression by the Chinese Communist Party. Insiders pointed out that Thailand is no longer a safe haven for Chinese exiles.
In June this year, the China Democracy Party held an event commemorating the “June Fourth” incident in Nakhon Pathom, west of Bangkok. Zhou Junyi, who participated in the event, was arrested by Thai police on June 11 at his residence on charges of visa violations.
According to reports from Agence France-Presse, Zhou Junyi, currently detained in a Thai detention center, expressed his anxiety and hopelessness about the possibility of being deported. He fears that once he is returned to China, he will be immediately arrested, tortured, and even face long-term imprisonment.
53-year-old Zhou Junyi came to the United States in 2015 to attend a conference organized by democracy activists and was arrested upon returning to China, with his passport confiscated. At the end of the same year, he made his way to Thailand via Laos, applying for asylum with the UN Refugee Agency but was not approved, leading to his prolonged stay in Thailand.
As previously reported by The Epoch Times, individuals familiar with Zhou Junyi mentioned that he had organized numerous June Fourth commemorative events, showing support for conscience convicts such as Jimmy Lai and Zhang Zhan. Particularly last year, he initiated the establishment of a “June Fourth Massacre Memorial Hall” in Thailand, attracting attention from the CCP. The arrest of Zhou Junyi by Thai police may have been due to pressure from the Chinese Embassy in Thailand; the CCP’s aim is to forcibly repatriate him.
The China Democracy Party in Los Angeles launched a campaign to rescue Zhou Junyi in June.
The chairman of the China Democracy Party International Alliance, Jie Lijian, stated to The Epoch Times on October 8 that in June, they submitted a petition to the Thai Consulate in Los Angeles, hoping that the Thai authorities could treat Zhou Junyi kindly, as he is a defender of human rights who could face severe sentences upon returning to China.
“We made a petition, hoping that their consulate would forward it to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Immigration Bureau, etc. We hope not to repatriate Zhou Junyi,” Jie Lijian said, adding that at that time, Thai officials pledged to do their best to help and handle the situation properly.
It is reported that individuals suspected to be associated with the Chinese authorities went to the immigration detention center to have Zhou Junyi sign some documents related to his possible repatriation, but he refused to sign. These documents could potentially be written materials for his return to China. Jie Lijian mentioned that Zhou Junyi resisted even to the point of death, preventing his repatriation, which continues until now.
Tan Yixiang, a Chinese human rights activist, has been detained by the Thai Immigration Department for over a year, despite being recognized as a refugee by the United Nations.
Both of them are currently seeking asylum in a third country.
The ongoing “flexible” law enforcement in Thailand has allowed Chinese exiles to stay under the radar. United Nations data indicates that about 200 Chinese exiles have sought asylum in Thailand in recent years. However, due to pressure from the CCP, they face an increasing risk of forced repatriation and worry that Thailand, once a “safe haven,” may no longer be sustainable.
However, Xing Jian, a former rights activist from Xie County, Henan, China, currently residing in New Zealand, expressed to The Epoch Times that Thailand is no longer a safe haven for Chinese exiles. The infiltration of the CCP in Thailand is severe, with many intelligence agencies operating there, infiltrating even among refugees.
“In 2019, when Thai police arrested me, the Chinese police came,” Xing Jian said. “The Chinese police and Thai Immigration Police talked on the phone, and they said, ‘Are you Xing Jian?’. I said ‘Yes’. They said ‘Wait, we’re coming over,’ then the Chinese police came.”
“At that time, the Chinese police told me that they could kill me in Thailand, and no one would know, very brazen,” Xing Jian emphasized. He stated that Thailand is no longer a safe place. Thailand is also concerned about retaliation from the CCP, as the tourism industry heavily relies on China.
Jie Lijian pointed out that due to the influence of the CCP, Chinese political refugees in Thailand are more worried now, afraid of collaboration between Thai authorities and the CCP leading to their repatriation. They are also hesitant to engage in protest activities, facing significant challenges in their survival.
“After applying for asylum, no one cares about you; you have to rent a house, eat, and it’s very difficult. They will do things that the local Thai people are unwilling to do to earn meager income to get by,” he said.
Jie Lijian mentioned that Southeast Asian countries are a backyard for the CCP, and influential dissidents are also afraid to go to Thailand. The revealed scams in recent years fall within the sphere of influence of the CCP. These countries have become extremely unsafe, and they are not suitable as safe havens for human rights defenders.
On February 27 this year, a group of Uyghurs who had been detained in Thailand for over a decade were deported back to China. Thailand’s actions have been criticized as being manipulated by economic coercion under the influence of the CCP, leading to condemnation from the United States and Western countries.
In recent years, Chinese dissidents have faced more frequent cross-border arrests by the CCP in Southeast Asian countries. For example, Gui Minhai was kidnapped in Thailand in October 2015, Jiang Yefei was repatriated; Dong Guangping was arrested and repatriated in Vietnam in 2022; one of the initiators of the “Wall-Falling Movement” in 2023, Qiao Xinxin, was arrested by the CCP in Laos; on July 28 of the same year, Lu Siwei was arrested by the Laotian police and repatriated to China.