UK: Hong Kong bookseller likely abducted to China

British government says Lee Bo was "involuntarily removed" to mainland, accusing Beijing of "serious" treaty breach.

Lee's disappearance at the end of December sparked international concern

The UK government says a missing Hong Kong bookseller was probably abducted to mainland China, accusing Beijing of a "serious breach" of the treaty under which it took control of the city.

Philip Hammond, the British foreign secretary, said in a report on Hong Kong affairs released on Thursday that Lee Bo, a UK citizen, was "involuntarily removed" to the mainland.

Lee is one of five men linked to the Hong Kong publishing company Mighty Current Media and its Causeway Bay Bookshop who have gone missing in recent months, only to turn up later in mainland China.

Their disappearances have raised international concern. Lee is chief editor of Mighty Current, which specialises in books critical of China's communist leadership that are banned in the mainland but popular with visiting Chinese tourists.

"The full facts of the case remain unclear, but our current information indicates that Mr Lee was involuntarily removed to the mainland without any due process under Hong Kong SAR law," the report said.

"This constitutes a serious breach of the Sino-British Joint Declaration on Hong Kong and undermines the principle of 'one country, two systems' which assures Hong Kong residents of the protection of the Hong Kong legal system," the report added.

Hammond said while visiting Beijing in January that he made urgent inquiries with Chinese authorities about Lee's whereabouts.