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Enlarge this image Members of the pro-Taiwan independence Taiwan Solidarity Union march in downtown Taipei in support of Hong Kong protesters demanding more freedom and autonomy from China. Alberto Buzzola/LightRocket via Getty Images Living quietly in Taiwan are several dozen young Hong Kong protesters who, one night in July, vandalized Hong Kong's legislature during ongoing anti-government protests. Their arrival in Taiwan has revived a fierce debate on the small, self-ruled island over whether it can — or should — accept Chinese citizens seeking safety. Taiwan's proximity to mainland China has long made it a desired safe haven for dissidents and other Chinese looking for a better life. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, there were nearly a dozen cases of desperate mainland Chinese citizens hijacking commercial jets and crash-landing them in Taiwan, seeking asylum. Most were imprisoned in Taiwan or sent back to mainland China. Now, as Chinese control grows over Hong Kong, Taiwan is again becoming a destination for political refugees from across greater China — especially from Hong Kong. Taiwan is treading carefully. It is wary of provoking Beijing's ire, and fears a more permissive refugee policy will open Taiwan's doors to mainland Chinese spies and conspirators. "China will take advantage of that kind of freedom, liberty and democracy," said Luo Chi-cheng, a lawmaker with Taiwan's majority Democratic Progressive Party. "A democracy like Taiwan has different concerns, sitting next to authoritarian China, than other ordinary democracies." Those who do flee to Taiwan often face difficulties. Taiwan has no formal refugee law, so political refugees are unable to work legally. Many of the Hong Kong protesters, who are staying in Taiwan on monthly tourist visas, are so young they have not even graduated from high school — making them ineligible for longer-term student visas. An informal network of churches and nonprofits supports them financially, and a volunteer group of Taiwanese lawyers has pledged free legal consultation. "Our hearts are with them" "They were not prepared at all. They are so young," said Lam Wing Kee, one of five booksellers detained in Hong Kong and spirited into mainland China by Chinese security officers in 2015. All were accused of selling banned political books. Lam is the only bookseller who went public with allegations that he had been abducted, and he refused to be taken back to mainland China. Lam is at the heart of Hong Kong's continuing mass anti-government protests. In April, he left Hong Kong for Taiwan, believing a proposed Hong Kong law might send him back to mainland China. The bill set off the protests roiling Hong Kong, causing Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam to shelve the legislation indefinitely. Even so, Lam is not returning to Hong Kong anytime soon. "Hong K
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