Activists, Taiwan Visitors Risk Arrest in China

Americans visiting China run the risk of arrest if they have been publicly critical of the Beijing regime or have visited Taiwan, the State Department says. The alert, effective for the rest of this year, is aimed at all U.S. citizens but particularly those of Chinese origin. It notes that China has detained several Americans or U.S. permanent residents who are Chinese-born and has accused them of espionage or “damaging China’s national security.” Contacts with Taiwan are sensitive because China regards Taiwan as a rebel province. The announcement does not apply to visits to the special administrative regions of Hong Kong or Macao. U.S.-Chinese relations have deteriorated in recent weeks because of the 11-day detention of the crew of a U.S. surveillance plane that collided with a Chinese fighter jet.

Turkey:

Gunmen advocating independence for the breakaway Russian republic of Chechnya took over a luxury hotel in Istanbul late last month and held about 120 guests and staff members hostage--including 54 Americans--before surrendering peacefully to police 12 hours later. The setting was the Swissotel Bosporus, in an upscale Istanbul neighborhood overlooking the Strait of Bosporus. The attackers fired shots around the lobby during the takeover, but no injuries were reported.

Worldwide

As American college students pack up and scatter for summer vacations abroad, the State Department is issuing its annual warning about the dangers of careless or reckless behavior in foreign countries. Highlights:

* Each year, more than 2,500 Americans are arrested abroad, half of them on narcotics charges. Some arrests are for possession of small amounts of drugs. A drug that is legal in one country may be illegal in a neighboring nation. Alcohol can also be a problem. Many arrests are for being drunk in public, for underage drinking and for drunken driving.

* National or cultural differences can lead to misunderstandings and trouble. In many countries, conduct that would not normally result in an arrest in the United States--for example, selling personal effects such as clothing, cameras or jewelry--may violate local laws.

* Some travelers believe they are immune to prosecution because they are U.S. citizens, but Americans are subject to the laws of the country they are visiting. Lawbreaker penalties can be severe, including prison sentences.

Europe / Macedonia:

Clashes between government forces and ethnic Albanians have raised the temperature in the former Yugoslav republic. Skopje, the capital, and other cities have been among the flash points, and gunmen have set up rural checkpoints and claimed control of some villages. Americans should limit travel to main roads in daytime and should avoid the areas north of Skopje and Tetovo to the borders of Kosovo and Serbia and from Kumanovo north and west to the Albanian border, the State Department advises. Americans in Macedonia are urged to check with the U.S. Embassy in Skopje for updated security information. The advisory expires Aug. 6, but the department has posted open-ended travel warnings for two of Macedonia’s Balkan neighbors, Yugoslavia and the former Yugoslav republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Briefly . . .

Spain: Basque terrorist violence, usually confined to northern Spain, struck in the capital earlier this month as a car bomb attributed to the separatist group ETA exploded in central Madrid, injuring 14 people.... Panama: Demonstrations over government economic policies have turned violent in recent weeks. On May 9 more than 100 people were injured, a dozen of them by gunfire, in what some observers called the worst night of rioting and looting since the 1989 U.S. invasion. The protests have included some anti-American sentiment.

Hot spots:

State Department travel warnings are posted for Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Angola, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Burundi, Colombia, Congo (formerly Zaire), Guinea-Bissau, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel and the Occupied Territories, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Republic of Congo (Brazzaville), Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Sudan, Tajikistan, Yemen and Yugoslavia.

The State Department offers recorded travel warnings and advisories at (202) 647-5225, Internet https://www.travel.state.gov.

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Edward Wright is a former assistant foreign editor at The Times. His column appears monthly.