Publisher Reportedly Free to Leave Taiwan

The publisher of a Monterey Park-based Chinese-language newspaper who was arrested in Taiwan and held for 10 days last month has received permission to leave Taiwan, an editor of her newspaper said Friday.

Lee Ya-ping, 62, a Taiwan citizen with immigrant status in the United States who is a San Marino resident, plans to return to Los Angeles on Tuesday, according to Anthony Yuen, editor in chief of the International Daily News.

Lee’s arrest in mid-September for allegedly publishing Communist Chinese propaganda in her U.S.-based newspaper prompted protests from the State Department and members of Congress, who criticized the arrest as an infringement of free speech rights protected by the U.S. Constitution.

A statement by Taiwan authorities when Lee was released in late September sought to shift the focus of the charges against her away from her publishing activities in the United States. The statement instead claimed that she had illegally distributed banned copies of her publication on Taiwan.

‘Protective Guidance’

After her release, a military court assigned Lee to a two-year term of “protective guidance,” which a Taiwan spokesman in Los Angeles described as roughly equivalent to probation. It was not clear then whether she would be required to remain in Taiwan for the two years.

Lee’s son, Simon Chen, general manager of the newspaper, said after her release that she wished to temporarily remain in Taiwan to take care of business matters and to have some dental work done before returning to this country.

Yuen said Friday that it still is not clear whether Lee is being exiled from Taiwan or whether she is free to return there in the future.

“She got permission to go out of the country,” the editor said. “As far as the details, I don’t know yet whether she can go back, (or) what conditions there are under these circumstances. We have to wait until she comes back.”

Elections Cited

Leaders of the ruling Nationalist Party wanted Lee to quickly leave Taiwan to avoid any possibility that her presence might affect mid-November elections, Yuen said.

In August, Lee had unsuccessfully sought the nomination of the ruling Nationalist Party, of which she is a member, to run for Kaohsiung County magistrate in next month’s elections. Lee is a former Kaohsiung City Council member.

Victor Chang, a spokesman in the Los Angeles office of the Coordination Council for North American Affairs, Taiwan’s quasi-official diplomatic mission, said he had no information about Lee receiving permission to leave Taiwan.