South Korean authorities have launched an investigation into the unofficial establishment of Chinese ‘police stations’ across the country. The possible presence of such organizations was discovered after an investigation in Seoul in 2023, The Straits Times reported.
The National Intelligence Service and police officials are investigating the suspected activities of China’s “police stations” that operate secretly for the Chinese government. These organizations operate in Seoul as well as other regions, including Jeju Island.
In May, the intelligence agency came to a preliminary conclusion that the Chinese restaurant served as a base for Beijing’s secret police operations in the Songpa district of central Seoul.
Choi Jae-hyun, a spokesman for the People’s Power Party, revealed on Thursday that Chinese government-run Confucius Institutes allegedly spread propaganda on behalf of Beijing and organized activities to counter the activities of students who support Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movements at South Korean universities, according to The Straits Times.
According to Safeguard Defenders, an NGO based in Spain, China allegedly operates more than 100 police stations in at least 53 countries to expand its influence and force the repatriation of Chinese citizens. However, Chinese officials have often denied the existence of such police stations in the country.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin reiterated during a press briefing on May 15 that “there are no so-called overseas police stations” and that such allegations are “disinformation…discrediting and discrediting China,” The Straits Times reported.
Wang also agreed that there are institutions to help Chinese citizens in other countries return home during the Covid-19 pandemic, but they are not “so-called police stations or police service centers”