Foreign CS Amina Mohammed defends Taiwanese expulsion

Foreign Affairs Secretary Amina Mohamed with Chinese foreign affairs minister Wang Yi during a press briefing at the Intercontinental Hotel in Nairobi on August 10, 2016. PHOTO | CORRESPONDENT | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Another 45 Taiwanese were expelled in a group of 117 Chinese in April over the same charges.
  • Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi told the media he is in the country to exchange views on the South Sudan situation and to discuss development matters.

The Foreign Affairs ministry has defended the deportation to China of five Taiwanese citizens charged with cyber-fraud.

The five were expelled on Monday together with 35 Chinese after a Nairobi court acquitted them last Friday.

Another 45 Taiwanese were expelled in a group of 117 Chinese in April over the same charges.

Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed told a press conference on Wednesday that Kenya recognised China as one state and the two countries were working closely to combat cybercrime.

“Kenya firmly believes in [a] one China policy. We have supported that policy since independence and it is not going to change,” said Ms Mohamed, adding: “We are getting a lot of support from the Chinese government in training our young people to fight cybercrime in the first place.”

Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi told the same press conference he is in the country to exchange views on the South Sudan situation and to discuss development matters.

Ms Mohamed said she and Mr Wang had earlier met President Uhuru Kenyatta and talked about areas of mutual interest such as projects funded by the Chinese government in Kenya.

At a different forum, Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Monica Juma reiterated that the government had not broken the law in deporting the Taiwanese.

Dr Juma said the deportees had entered Kenya from China and as such they had to be deported to that country in accordance with international laws.

“Deportations are processed according to a country’s domestic laws and in this case, it was done according to the Kenyan laws and international practices. Deported citizens are returned to their last port of origin,” she said at a Nairobi hotel on Wednesday.