European Union backs Sweden’s demand for immediate release of missing Hong Kong bookseller Gui Minhai
EU envoy says Swedish citizen should be given access to family, consular support and medical care
The European Union’s ambassador to China said on Wednesday he expects Chinese authorities to immediately release Swedish citizen and Hong Kong-based bookseller Gui Minhai, echoing demands from Stockholm.
Sweden confirmed on Tuesday that Gui, who has published books on the personal lives of Chinese Communist Party leaders, was taken into custody on the weekend while travelling with Swedish diplomats to seek medical treatment in Beijing.
EU ambassador to China Hans Dietmar Schweisgut said the EU “fully supports” Sweden’s efforts to resolve the issue with China.
“We expect the Chinese authorities to immediately release Gui Minhai from detention and to allow him to reunite with his family, to get consulate support and medical support in line with his rights, because he is a Swedish citizen and also a citizen of the European Union,” Schweisgut said.
Gui was abducted in Thailand while on holiday in 2015, one of five Hong Kong booksellers who went missing that year and later appeared in custody on mainland China. The four others have returned to Hong Kong.
Chinese authorities said Gui was freed in October after serving a two-year sentence for a traffic offence in 2003.