Bookseller Gui Minhai could face five-year jail term, say legal experts

Publisher Gui Minhai could face five years in prison for running an illegal business across the border or a heavier sentence if convicted of being the ringleader of a business that circulates material inciting state subversion.

Politics aside, legal experts said the offence the Mighty Current publishing house co-owner was accused of was not very serious and he could be jailed for less than five years.

“The punishment for running an illegal business is usually not very heavy ... and [Gui’s] case is not particularly serious,” said Professor Gu Minkang of City University’s law school. “Many people are concerned about the case. I believe [the court] will be careful about the way it is handled and then make a reasonable decision.”

Gui disappeared in mysterious circumstances in October in the Thai beach resort of Pattaya. It was speculated he had been kidnapped by Chinese agents because his publishing house specialised in books critical of the Chinese Communist Party.

About a week ago, mainland media quoted investigators as accusing Gui of “running an illegal business”. He was accused of ordering his associates to deliver about 4,000 books banned on the mainland across the border since October 2014 to 380 customers.

Under mainland Chinese law, if an illegal business operation involves less than 250,000 yuan (HK$300,000), then imprisonment would be below five years.

The law also states that if the quantity of banned books in question is 2,000 or more, then the sentence would be five years or below. It would be longer than five years for 5,000 or more.