Hong Kong Unsettled by Case of 5 Missing Booksellers
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

HONG KONG — Hong Kong pro-democracy lawmakers said Sunday that they will press the government for answers after a fifth employee of a publishing company specializing in books critical of mainland China's leadership went missing.

Lawmaker Albert Ho said the city was "shocked and appalled" by the disappearance of Lee Bo. Like the four others who have disappeared in recent months, Lee is associated with publisher Mighty Current.

While there's been no official word on what happened to the five missing people, Ho told reporters that it appears their disappearances are linked to the publishing company's books.

"From the available information surrounding the disappearance of Mr. Lee Bo and his partners earlier, we have strong reason to believe that Mr. Lee Bo was probably kidnapped and then smuggled back to the mainland for political investigation," Ho said.

Ho said that one possible explanation for the disappearances was that the publishing company was being pressured to scrap plans for an upcoming book rumored to be about an old "girlfriend or mistress" of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

It's not uncommon in mainland China for company executives and dissidents to be detained for lengthy periods by the authorities or vanish without anyone claiming responsibility, but the disappearances are unprecedented in Hong Kong and have shocked the city's publishing industry.

A few dozen protesters marched to Beijing's Liaison Office on Sunday to demand information about Lee, Mighty Current's chief editor. Lee, 65, is also one of the company's major shareholders, the South China Morning Post reported.

The company's co-owner, Gui Minhai, is also among those missing, as are three staff members.

Mighty Current and its Causeway Bay Bookstore are known for gossipy titles about Chinese political scandals and other sensitive issues popular with visiting tourists from the mainland.

Books by Mighty Current are banned on the mainland but are available in Hong Kong, which enjoys freedom of the press and other civil liberties unseen on the mainland because of its status as a specially administered region of China. However, the disappearances highlight growing concern that Beijing is moving to tighten its grip on the former British colony as Xi moves to clamp down on dissent.

Hong Kong Acting Secretary for Security John Lee told reporters that police were "actively" investigating the case and would widen the scope of their probe.

The Hong Kong-Macau Affairs Office, which is under China's State Council, could not be reached Sunday for comment.

Lee went missing Wednesday evening and was last seen leaving his company's warehouse, according to local media reports.

His wife told the Cable TV news channel in a report broadcast Saturday that she received a phone call from him the night he disappeared. She said he told her then that he was "assisting an investigation" and alluded to the earlier disappearances, but was not more specific.

The number indicated the call came from Shenzhen, the mainland Chinese city next door to Hong Kong, the report said.

銅鑼灣政治禁書店 老闆、股東人間蒸發

香港專售大陸政治禁書的銅鑼灣書店，老闆桂民海、股東李波和多名店員陸續在香港和泰國失蹤，李波家人疑其被帶到大陸。事件引起香港社會關注，警方已接獲報案展開調查。

香港銅鑼灣書店創辦於一九九四年，以售賣被認定大陸「禁書」的政治書籍成名，成為陸客光顧熱點。過去三個月間，書店老闆桂民海和三名職員分別在香港和泰國等地失蹤，上星期身為書店股東的作家李波也宣告失蹤。

李波的妻子元旦當天到北角警署報案，表示其丈夫上月卅日到書店位於柴灣的貨倉後失蹤；當晚收到丈夫的電話，來電顯示是由大陸撥出，丈夫表示「正協助調查」，提醒她不要「搞大」事件。

上月卅日與李波一起到貨倉的女子說，當天前去提書，她先行離開，留下李波在現場準備書本給客人，但指李波並無客人資料和單據，做法與平時不同。

警員事後到倉庫調查，發現倉庫整齊、關上門及關了燈，而之前選出來的十多本書則不在倉庫。警方調查重點，是當日下午五時至晚上十時許間李波的去向，將追查電話通話紀錄，翻看貨倉所在大廈的閉路電視錄影。

港府相關部門初步調查，暫時未找到李波的出境紀錄，未能確定他是否離開香港或前往大陸。

港府政務司長林鄭月娥回應事件說，香港政府非常關注港人不論在本地或外地的福祉，警務處已就有關個案做處理。被問到是否有大陸執法人員在香港執法，林鄭月娥說，警方正調查，不便評論。

香港記者協會和香港獨立評論人協會，為此致信大陸駐港中聯辦主任張曉明、廣東省公安廳、深圳公安局及香港政制及內地事務局，要求澄清及交代銅鑼灣書店股東和職員集體失蹤的事件。

信中表示，銅鑼灣書店以出版大陸「禁書」聞名，負責人和職員集體人間蒸發，大陸有關部門從未就此事作澄清，引起香港民眾高度關注和不安。促請中聯辦主任張曉明盡快回應事件，包括是否涉及大陸執法人員在境外行動，失蹤者是否在大陸，以及所涉何事。

香港城市大學公共政策助理系主任張楚勇表示，「一國兩制」下，只有香港執法機關有權執法，若有大陸公安到港執法，嚴重違反基本法。

港府保安局前局長葉劉淑儀說，她任內未曾有大陸執法人員在港執法事件。若有港人在大陸被拘捕，按照現行機制，大陸有關部門必須向香港保安局通報。如果失蹤人士家屬有報警，保安局和警方應調查跟進。除非有關人士是乘坐「大飛」（快艇）返回大陸，否則香港入境處必定會有出入境紀錄。

原文參照：
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2016/01/03/world/asia/ap-as-hong-kong-missing-booksellers.html

2016-01-03．聯合報．A12．兩岸．香港特派員李春