Beijing’s Attempts to Influence Perceptions of Taiwan: A Shift in Perspective on Judge, Jury, and Executioner
At a time of heightened rhetoric over Taiwan, the communist regime has let all other potential dissident voices know what awaits them should they speak out.
Commentary
The ad hoc nature of Beijing’s bungling and bullying foreign policy has been highlighted yet again through the differing treatment of political prisoners Yang Hengjun and Cheng Lei.
Both Australian citizens were apprehended for spurious alleged crimes against the state, and the possible penalties were harsh. In a dictatorship where the judiciary is the lapdog of the leadership, one can get an insight into the party’s thinking and priorities from the judge’s gavel and decision.
It was hailed as a diplomatic coup and a success for Foreign Minister Penny Wong. All of Australia celebrated Cheng Lei’s release, and the export discussions became more relaxed. Freedom and return to Australia after three long years in detention must have been surreal for Ms. Cheng.
An experience that will most certainly be permanently imprinted in her mind, and needs to be told time and time again to remind Australians that the regime is not benign and run by a cuddly “Winnie the Pooh”-type bear.
For Cheng Lei, it suited the immediate purposes of the regime to showcase itself as reasonable and compassionate. Let’s make no mistake, Cheng Lei should never have been charged in the first place.
Not so fortunate was Yang Hengjun who now languishes in a prison cell with a pending suspended death penalty after being convicted of a serious “crime.”
It has taken five years for the judicial system in Beijing to come to this resolution. The delay and the punishment meted out is unconscionable. Mr. Yang languished for five years in a prison cell before his conviction.
At a time of heightened rhetoric over Taiwan, the communist regime has let all other potential dissident voices know what awaits them should they speak out.
And it’s not only for those living in China. It is a very stern warning to all people of Chinese origin who may speak for freedom and peace against the regime in another country. Do so, then don’t bother visiting family in China. The same chill fills the bosoms of Falun Gong practitioners around the world. The dictatorship’s increased brittleness is being displayed by its heavy-handed approach. Living in their cocoon the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) power brokers may not understand the bemusement their antics elicit.
For anyone who believes in the rule of law, fair trials, and open trials, which should be at the very heart of any half-respectable judicial system, the latest outcomes in China, courtesy of the dictatorship’s control, should leave the world community ice-cold.
To think that during the Turnbull prime ministership and Julie Bishop’s stewardship of the Foreign Ministry, there was a serious proposal to have an extradition treaty between Australia and the CCP is mind-boggling. Those who vehemently opposed the proposal for all the reasons that are now so very apparent, have undoubtedly been vindicated.
Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
