China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) confirmed on Wednesday that a Taiwanese fiction writer living in China is being prosecuted for writing “obscene” material. The confirmation comes following an announcement by Taiwan’s Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) on Tuesday that writer Liao Meng-yen (廖孟彥), better known by his pen name Roson (羅森), has not made contact with his family for over a year.
TAO spokesperson Zhu Fenglian (朱鳳蓮) addressed the issue for the first time during a press conference on Wednesday. Zhu says that Liao is suspected of "producing, selling, and disseminating obscene materials for profit," and that his case is being "handled in accordance with the law." Writers of erotic fiction in China, or those whose works have been deemed “obscene”, have been prosecuted in recent years.
Liao specializes in “wuxia” fiction, which focuses on martial arts in a fantasy setting. According to RW News, Liao moved to China several years ago because wuxia is more popular there and it is difficult for Chinese customers to pay for Taiwanese products online.
Fans of Liao had noticed that his Weibo page has been inactive since late 2022, which is also when Liao’s family lost contact with him. One netizen posted on November 30 that Liao had been sentenced to 12 years in prison, while three other writers also received jail time. TAO did not confirm whether or not Liao has been sentenced.
Zhu was asked if the SEF had been contacted by its Chinese counterparts regarding Liao’s case. Zhu says that because the SEF has damaged the foundation of cross-strait relations by rejecting the 1992 consensus, communications between the two sides have ceased.