China Treats Thailand as Its Backyard, Systematically Suppressing Dissidents Through Three Main Channels

On July 1st, China's "Law on Promoting Ethnic Unity and Progress" came into effect, seen by the outside world as a legal cover for China to extend its ideological control globally. Five days later, political commentator Yabita Akira was violently attacked in Taiwan. The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) labeled it as cross-border suppression by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), with preliminary investigations pointing to Hong Kong's triad "Winsome and Harmony." From threatening letters, stalking, and deepfake pornographic images to physical violence, the methods vary, but the goal is the same: to wear you down physically and mentally, isolate you socially, and ultimately strip you of the ability to continue working. This special report, based on five cross-national interviews, starts with the case of Yabita being attacked by the underworld in Taiwan and extends to the personal experiences of Hong Konger Liu Jiawen in exile in the UK, New Zealand-based independent journalist Mao Pei, Canadian MP Jenny Kwan, and Sunai Phasuk, a senior advisor to Human Rights Watch in Thailand, to examine how systematic the CCP's suppression is and what these "high-risk groups facing cross-border suppression" are facing. "China has long treated Thailand as its backyard!" Thai human rights workers express dissatisfaction with cross-border suppression "In fact, China has long treated Thailand as its backyard. China can arrest anyone on its own or have Thailand do the dirty work for them." Sunai Phasuk, an advisor to the Thailand division of "Human Rights Watch" (HRW) in Asia, expressed strong indignation in a late July interview with the Wind Media English website regarding China's cross-border suppression in Thailand, especially the recent tragedy of the Thai government sending dissidents back to China to please Beijing. A 2022 investigation by the human rights organization "Safeguard Defenders" discovered that China has established at least 54 "Overseas Police Service Stations" on five continents to monitor and intimidate overseas Chinese communities. The report pointed out that approximately 230,000 people were pressured to return to China between April 2021 and July 2022. The 2026 report by Freedom House also showed that the number of cross-border suppression cases by governments around the world against overseas critics reached 1,375 between 2014 and 2025. China alone accounted for 319 cases, making it the most notorious country. It specifically named Thailand for cooperating with Chinese and Vietnamese authorities to detain and assist in the repatriation of ethnic minorities or dissidents. Just before boarding a flight to Canada, the fate of dissidents is not optimistic This type of controversy over the repatriation of dissidents has recently been replayed in Thailand. In July, the international human rights organization "Human Rights Watch" issued a statement urging that Chinese dissidents should not be forcibly sent back to China. At the time, the press release stated that at least four people were being held in the Suan Phlu Immigration Detention Center in Bangkok. These four individuals are former Caixin investigator Bai Zhaodong (56 years old), Tibetan and Uyghur human rights advocate Tan Yixiang (49 years old), Falun Gong member and rights activist Zhang Xinyan (56 years old), and banned member of the Chinese Democratic Party Zhou Junyi (54 years old). They have all been granted refugee status by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), with Zhang Xinyan already accepted by the Canadian government and scheduled to leave Thailand on a flight from Bangkok to Vancouver on July 8th. However, she was detained by Thai police at the last moment, restricting her from leaving the country. "I am deeply concerned about this!" Jenny Kwan, the Canadian MP for Vancouver East, who has been actively following this matter, pointed out in an interview that Zhang Xinyan has been recognized as a refugee by the United Nations and accepted for resettlement by the Canadian government, but was stopped before boarding her flight to Canada and remains detained to this day. "I have submitted her case to Global Affairs Canada and continue to urge the government to negotiate with Thai authorities as soon as possible to ensure her safe release and smooth passage to Canada." Kwan emphasized that Canada has a responsibility to protect those it has promised to accept for resettlement in every possible way, and no refugee should be deprived of a safe opportunity due to political pressure from a foreign government. Lawyers were unaware! Human rights advocate Tan Yixiang was secretly sent back to China From an external perspective, the situation of these four individuals is quite dangerous, especially during Thai Prime Minister Anutin's visit to China, when Chinese dissidents may be forcibly repatriated as "souvenirs." Currently monitoring this case, Phasuk further expressed concern and learned from Thai authorities and human rights partners that Tan Yixiang was quietly sent back to China as early as June this year, meaning that "Human Rights Watch" was advocating for the four individuals in early July when Tan Yixiang had already been sent back. He said, "No one was notified beforehand. His lawyer was unaware. The United Nations agencies, human rights groups, and all of us did not know that he had been sent back to China." Phasuk pointed out that Tan Yixiang's whereabouts and fate after being repatriated to China remain a mystery. "We know nothing. His life and safety have become our new concern." He also emphasized that no one knows under what circumstances Tan Yixiang was sent back to China. "We can only confirm from Thai authorities that he is no longer in the immigration detention center and has returned to China." Regarding whether he was repatriated by Thai officials or directly taken back by Chinese police from Thai territory, there is no clue, and thus there is concern for the fate of the remaining three Chinese dissidents, "because they are at an urgent risk of being forcibly repatriated at any time, and human rights groups, United Nations agencies, or other embassies have no chance to intervene or persuade Thailand not to do so." Thailand is becoming more and more dangerous! Phasuk criticizes: Thai authorities have stooped to please Beijing This is not the first time Thailand has insisted on repatriating Chinese who may face political retaliation. In July 2015, Thailand, despite strong international opposition, repatriated more than 100 Uyghurs to China; in the same year, Chinese human rights activists Dong Guangping and Jiang Yefei were also forcibly repatriated by Thailand and were eventually sentenced in China for "inciting subversion of state power" and "illegal border crossing." Dong Guangping successfully sailed a rubber boat to South Korea in May this year, was granted asylum by Canada, arrived in Canada in June to reunite with his family, and ended his 10-year exile; and in February 2025, Thailand again repatriated 40 Uighur men to China, exposing them to unpredictable political persecution risks. Phasuk frankly stated, "For Chinese dissidents or anyone prosecuted by Beijing, Thailand has become increasingly dangerous." He pointed out that cases of exiled social activists, publishers, and democracy and freedom advocates being targeted by Beijing and eventually arrested in Thailand are not few. Phasuk also pointed out that the fate of the Uighurs previously repatriated to China is uncertain. The Thai government had promised to regularly track whether these repatriated Uighurs were safe, but he said, "The government is lying," because the Thai government only conducted two or three visits and then stopped tracking, "The government can't even clearly say whether the Uighurs they visited are the ones they repatriated." Phasuk criticized, "The Thai authorities have stooped to this level to satisfy Beijing, sacrificing their own international reputation and their obligations in law and human rights." Previously, there were reports that in 2018, Chinese human rights activist Xiang Li was photographed and interrogated by unknown Chinese individuals in a Thai immigration detention center, interrogated by CCP officials; Chinese dissident Dong Guangping was even taken away from the Thai immigration detention center by people sent by the CCP. These actions were seen by overseas Chinese human rights activists as cross-border suppression and illegal abduction by China. Regarding this, Phasuk said, "China basically treats Thailand as its backyard. They can extend their long arm of suppression to target anyone at any time, and Thailand is willing to cooperate, so Thailand has become an extension of Beijing's suppression actions." Phasuk's revelation! The three main channels of China's cross-border suppression Phasuk introduced that the CCP can send Chinese dissidents back to China through three main channels. The first is "deportation" (Deportation). China will formally request Thailand to claim that these people are Chinese citizens and must be sent back. These people will be arrested in Thailand for immigration-related offenses and then deported to China. The second is "extradition" (Extradition). In many past cases, it can be seen that China will claim that the person it wants to extradite has been prosecuted or convicted and has an "unexecuted arrest warrant." However, Phasuk said, "But the problem is, are these accusations or convictions genuine criminal offenses, or are they politically motivated? The result of my investigation is that in most cases like this, the accusations or convictions are politically motivated." Phasuk stated that whether it is the first or second channel, theoretically, Thailand has a domestic mechanism, that is, the court can review whether deportation or extradition actions have concerns related to safety and humanity based on international standards and Thai domestic laws. "Unfortunately, the Thai court is unwilling to play this important role of the 'gatekeeper.'" Without review and without guarantees, Phasuk said, "It can be said that as long as China and Thailand agree on who to send back, there is no effective operating protection mechanism to stop it, which is also why Thailand is a dangerous place for Chinese dissidents." The third is the "chartered flight back" carried out in secret. Phasuk said that this is a newly emerged method. Under the context of similar criminal law enforcement cooperation, China will use chartered flights or private planes between China and Thailand to send back criminals who are nominally related to fraud or gambling. "But who knows, it is very easy and convenient to insert some dissidents or refugees, because these mission flights are usually taking off and landing at military airports, and we have no way to supervise." Thailand violates the "non-refoulement" principle