The People’s Republic of China has been accused of establishing at least two undeclared “police stations” in the Netherlands, after denying reports that it established a police station in Nigeria and other African countries
According to the BBC, Dutch media found evidence that the “overseas service stations”, which promise to provide diplomatic services, are being used to try to silence Chinese dissidents in Europe.
The BBC report stated that a spokeswoman for the Dutch Foreign Ministry said the existence of the unofficial police outposts was illegal, but the Chinese Foreign Ministry has rejected the Dutch allegations.
Recall that an investigation report by Safeguard Defender showed that the Chinese Police Station known as ‘Service Station’ is located in Benin City, capital of Edo State in Nigeria and in two other countries in Africa including Maseru in Lesotho, Dar es Salaam in Tanzania.
The report indicated that the Chinese ‘Service Stations’ are located in other countries including 35 service stations in 16 European countries, 10 service stations in six American countries and five service stations in five Asian countries.
The investigation report by Safeguard Defender noted that the Chinese authorities claimed that from April 2021 to July 2022, 230,000 nationals had been “persuaded to return” to face criminal proceedings in China.
The BBC report stated that the Dutch investigation was sparked by the same Spain-based NGO, Safeguard Defenders report.
The BBC report further stated that the Safeguard Defenders report revealed that the public security bureaus from two Chinese provinces had established 54 “overseas police service centres” across five continents and 21 countries. Most of them are in Europe, including nine in Spain and four in Italy. In the UK, it found two in London and one in Glasgow.
The BBC also reports that the units were ostensibly created to tackle transnational crime and conduct administrative duties, such as the renewal of Chinese drivers’ licences. But, according to Safeguard Defenders, in reality they carry out “persuasion operations”, aimed at coercing those suspected of speaking out against the Chinese regime to return home.
The BBC reports that the Chinese Embassy in Netherlands told RTL News that it was not aware of the existence of such police stations.
But the Dutch foreign ministry spokeswoman, Maxime Hovenkamp told the BBC that “The Dutch government wasn’t made aware of these operations through the diplomatic channels with the Chinese government. That is illegal.”
Hovenkamp added that the Dutch government would have to investigate and decide the appropriate response, saying that “It is very worrying that a Chinese national has apparently been subjected to intimidation and harassment here in the Netherlands. Police are looking into options to offer him protection.”
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