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進入《TAIPEI TIMES》 Chinese man arrested after punching Japanese speaker
Japanese media personality Akio Yaita, standing, gives a speech at an event in Taichung yesterday. Photo copied by Hsu Kuo-chen, Taipei Times
By Hsu Kuo-chen, Su Chin-feng and Hollie Younger / Staff reporters, with staff writer
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A man wearing black, left, is pictured tailing Japanese media personality Akio Yaita at a hotel lobby in Taichung yesterday.
Photo copied by Hsu Kuo-chen, Taipei Times
A 33-year-old Chinese man was arrested yesterday at Taichung International Airport after he allegedly assaulted a Japanese media personality following his speech on cross-strait relations in a hotel in Taichung’s Situn District （西屯）.
After giving a speech in Taichung yesterday morning, Akio Yaita, was attacked by a man wearing black inside a hotel lobby, who police identified as a Chinese man surnamed Liao （廖）.
Yaita, formerly the Sankei Shimbun Taipei bureau chief, was invited as a keynote speaker at a conference hosted by the Spring Rain Culture and Education Foundation, where he spoke on cross-strait relations and Indo-Pacific security, according to the foundation’s social media page.
Hotel security footage shows Liao following Yaita into the lobby, where he appears to shout at him before punching him in the face, leaving his lips and mouth bloody.
A medical report showed that Yaita suffered blunt-force injuries to his lower jaw and abrasions to his upper lip.
Following the assault, Liao fled the scene and was attempting to leave Taiwan on a flight to Busan, South Korea, when police arrested him in Taichung International Airport.
Taichung City Police Department’s Sixth Precinct responded to the incident and referred the case to the Taichung District Prosecutors’ Office.
Liao has been detained for questioning to ascertain his motive, whether the attack was premeditated and if there were any other factors or co-conspirators.
Police did not rule out expanding the investigation.
The Mainland Affairs Council said that this is the first cross-border repression case seen since China’s Law on Promoting Ethnic Unity and Progress was put into effect.
The government would not treat the matter lightly and would hold those responsible to account, it added.
Taichung City Councilor and convenor of the Democratic Progressive Party （DPP） council caucus Chou Yung-hong （周永鴻） said yesterday that violence against public speakers, journalists or public commentators is unacceptable in a democratic society.
Yaita has long focused on issues related to China, and the issue should not be dismissed as a random altercation, Chou added.
Yaita said he cannot rule out that he was targeted because of his past comments and political views.
Yaita has frequented TV political shows as a commentator since leaving Sankei Shimbun in 2024. Born in China and immigrating to Japan at age 15, Yaita became a Taiwan citizen in 2024.
He now heads the Taipei-based Indo-Pacific Strategy Thinktank.
Chou said that police should investigate whether the suspect had been following him beforehand or knew his itinerary in advance, or whether anyone had directed the attack.
He urged the Taichung City Government to review security protocols for public events involving international guests, journalists and speakers, saying that event organizers and police should have risk assessments and emergency response mechanisms in place.
The foundation has issued a statement to strongly condemn the assault, calling for those responsible to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
Foundation chairman and Taichung City Councilor Shih Chih-chang （施志昌） said that attempting to silence someone using violence goes against the fundamental democratic principles of freedom of speech and the rule of law.
The foundation would fully cooperate with police by providing surveillance footage and has assigned staff to accompany Yaita during his medical treatment, he said, adding it would assist the case.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also condemned the violence.
The incident highlights that China is carrying out transnational repression against people in various countries around the world, attempting to expand its authoritarian influence through violent means, it said.
Additional reporting by Chen Yu-fu
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
