The disappearance of Simon Cheng refers to the incident in which Simon Cheng, an employee of the British Consulate General in Hong Kong, was administratively detained by the Chinese mainland police at the Hong Kong West Kowloon High Speed Rail Station on August 8, 2019, and claimed to have been forced to disappear. Because the incident occurred during the anti-extradition bill movement and because of Cheng's special identity, it attracted widespread attention from both China and Hong Kong. Later, the Luohu Branch of the Shenzhen Public Security Bureau of the Chinese police issued a situation report on the Chinese social media "Weibo" on August 26, 2019, regarding his claim of disappearance in the mainland, stating that Cheng violated the "Public Security Administration Punishment Law of the People's Republic of China" in Shenzhen and "engaged in prostitution many times", and sentenced him to administrative detention for 15 days. He was released as scheduled on August 24.
Simon Cheng did not make a public appearance at the beginning of his release. On November 20, 2019, he released a full statement about his disappearance, For the Record: An Enemy of the State, and accepted interviews with the Wall Street Journal, the Daily Telegraph and the BBC, claiming that he was tortured by the "National Security" personnel of the Chinese mainland secret police during his detention, and was asked to explain the role of the UK in the anti-amendment protests in Hong Kong, and confessed to "prostitution" and "betraying the motherland" under coercion. According to Simon Cheng, he was taken away by compulsory measures during border inspection at the mainland port area of the Hong Kong West Kowloon High-Speed Railway Station.
On July 1, 2020, Simon Cheng held an online press conference, stating that he was the first Hong Kong citizen (Hong Kong resident) and British National Overseas Passport (BNO) holder to be granted political asylum by the British authorities, and can stay in the UK for 5 years, and then apply for permanent residence and British citizenship.
Background Simon Cheng (1990-), a Hong Kong resident, lived in Tuen Mun, Hong Kong until he graduated from high school. From 2010 to 2014, Simon Cheng studied at the Department of Political Science, International Relations, National Taiwan University. During his studies, he was a short-term exchange student at Peking University and the University of Tokyo.
After graduating from National Taiwan University, Simon Cheng studied for a master's degree in European political economy at the London School of Economics and Political Science and graduated in 2017. During this period, he took the elective course "Chinese Government and Politics".
At the end of 2017, Simon Cheng returned to Hong Kong and became an employee of the Scottish International Development Agency of the British Consulate General in Hong Kong. Later, due to his disappearance in August 2019, he was accused of soliciting prostitution and questioned by the Chinese police. The British government regarded him as a security risk and asked him to resign.
Disappearance At 12 noon on August 8, 2019, Simon Cheng left his home in Jordan, Hong Kong and entered Shenzhen, Guangdong Province to attend a business meeting that day. At 18:00 on the evening of August 8, Simon Cheng entered the club and left at 21:00. At 22:00, Simon Cheng sent a WeChat message to his girlfriend claiming that he was taking the high-speed rail back, and then lost contact with his family. When Simon Cheng was interviewed by the BBC later, he claimed that he was stopped during the border inspection at the mainland port area of West Kowloon Station, and was sent on a train to Shenzhen and handed over to three plainclothes police officers from the Chinese National Security Department.
On August 9, Shenzhen Luohu police said that "Hong Kong resident Simon Cheng was sentenced to 15 days of administrative detention 1. Article 66 of the "Public Security Administration Punishment Law of the People's Republic of China" stipulates that those who engage in prostitution or solicit prostitution shall be detained for not less than 10 days but not more than 15 days, and may be fined not more than 5,000 yuan; if the circumstances are minor, they shall be detained for not more than 5 days or fined not more than 500 yuan. Those who solicit prostitution in public places shall be detained for not more than 5 days or fined not more than 500 yuan. by Luohu police for violating Article 66 of the "Public Security Administration Punishment Law of the People's Republic of China" (i.e. prostitution).
On August 10, Simon Cheng's family said that the Hong Kong Immigration Department stated that the person was administratively detained in mainland China, and the reason and location of the detention were unknown.
On August 21, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a regular press conference. Spokesperson Geng Shuang stated that Simon Cheng was sentenced to 15 days of administrative detention by Shenzhen police for violating the "Public Security Administration Punishment Law of the People's Republic of China". When reporters asked about the specific case, Geng Shuang said "It is recommended to inquire with the relevant departments." On the same day, a Facebook page named "Release Simon Cheng" uploaded a statement signed by "Simon's Family" yesterday, saying: "After verification by lawyers, the case is under the charge of the Shenzhen Public Security Bureau, but it has not been found out where Simon is being held, and he has not been able to meet with a lawyer. There is no trace of Simon in the Shenzhen Detention Center, Bao'an District Detention Center, and Nanshan District Detention Center. Two police stations in Guangzhou and Shenzhen, as well as the Guangzhou Railway Public Security Bureau, all said they did not know Simon's whereabouts. "The family feels helpless and is very worried about Simon's safety. They hope that Simon can return to Hong Kong as soon as possible."
On August 22, the Luohu police in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province announced that Hong Kong resident Zheng Moujie was sentenced to 15 days of administrative detention by the Luohu police on August 9 for violating Article 66 of the "Public Security Administration Punishment Law of the People's Republic of China" (i.e. prostitution). The family of Zheng was not informed of this because "it was requested by Zheng himself".Article 55 of the Provisions on the Handling of Administrative Cases by Public Security Organs: (V) When implementing administrative compulsory measures that restrict the personal freedom of citizens, the family members of the party concerned shall be informed on the spot of the public security organ implementing the compulsory measures, the reasons, the location and the duration; if it is impossible to inform on the spot, the family members shall be informed immediately by telephone, text message, fax, etc. after the implementation of the compulsory measures; if the identity is unknown, the family members are refused to provide contact information, or it is impossible to notify due to force majeure such as natural disasters, no notification may be made. The circumstances of informing or notifying the family members or the reasons for not being able to notify the family members shall be noted in the interrogation record.Article 176 of the Provisions on the Handling of Administrative Cases by Public Security Organs: When a decision on administrative detention is made, the family of the person being punished shall be notified promptly of the punishment and the place of execution or the situation of non-execution in accordance with the law. ... If the person being punished refuses to provide contact information for his family or does not give his real name and address, and his identity is unknown, he may not be notified, but this shall be noted in the decision attached to the file. Zheng Wenjie denied this statement in a public statement on November 20, 2019.
On August 24, the Luohu Branch of the Shenzhen Public Security Bureau stated on Weibo that Zheng Wenjie had been released after the expiration of the administrative detention. During the administrative detention, the public security organs protected Zheng Wenjie's various legal rights and interests in accordance with the law, and stated that Zheng Wenjie confessed to his illegal facts. On the same day, the Facebook page "Release Simon Cheng" said that Cheng Wenjie has returned to Hong Kong. He and his family hope to rest and settle down first. He will not accept interviews for the time being and thank the outside world for their concern. The page was closed on the 26th.
The Apple Daily reported that judging from the CCTV footage, the massage place involved is the "Lishui Yunjian Leisure Club", a long-established massage shop located on Dongmen Middle Road, Luohu District, Shenzhen, which is frequented by many Hong Kong people. It is still operating normally after the incident.
Torture claims On August 22, after the Luohu police announced the reasons for his detention, Zheng Wenjie's family said they would not respond to the report, saying that "justice is in the hearts of the people." On August 23, Zheng Wenjie's family's Facebook account posted a message saying: "Prostitution is a fabricated charge. Everyone should think this is a joke." On the same day, Geng Shuang said at a press conference that this incident was not a diplomatic issue, but an ordinary public security case.
On September 9, Zheng Wenjie posted on Facebook: "Pray for Hong Kong! Come on Hong Kong!"
On November 20, the BBC broadcast a video of Zheng Wenjie's interview. In the video, Zheng Wenjie said that he was tortured during his detention in Shenzhen, and the torturer claimed to be a national security staff member. Zheng Wenjie was shackled, blindfolded, hooded, handcuffed to an X-shaped frame, and forced to squat for several hours. If he moved slightly, he would be beaten on vulnerable parts of the body such as ankles and joints. In addition, he was sleep deprived and forced to sing the national anthem of the People's Republic of China to stay awake. Cheng Wenjie also said that during his detention, he saw a group of Hong Kong people being arrested and interrogated. The interrogators also tied him to a chair, pulled his hair, forced him to use facial unlock to open his phone, and looked through his communication records with British officials. After getting nothing, the Chinese government asked him to record two video confessions. He said one was about "betraying the motherland" and the other was about "prostitution." At the end of the video, the host asked Cheng Wenjie if he had solicited prostitution. Cheng Wenjie did not answer directly, but said "I don't want to focus on whether I have solicited prostitution... because that is exactly what they (the mainland government) want" and "I have not done anything to let down the people I cherish and love." Cheng Wenjie's written statement also mentioned that he denied all the arbitrary accusations made by the authorities through illegal procedures (including torture, threats and coercion) to collect evidence. In the interview, he also revealed that "the British Consulate instructed staff to collect information and information about the demonstrations." As a "supporter of the democratic movement," Cheng joined some social groups where demonstrators coordinated their actions with the consent of the consulate and began to report what he saw to his colleagues. The consulate also paid him overtime. Cheng Wenjie and British government sources insisted that his job was not to direct events in any way, but to observe purely - just like the civil society observation work done by many embassies.