17 October 2015: Abduction from Pattaya, Thailand

On the 17th of October, Gui Minhai is approached by a man in a striped shirt outside his holiday home in Pattaya, Thailand. They both get into Minhai’s car and drive off. Read Safeguard Defenders’ analysis of the abduction here.

October–January 2015: Causeway Bay Books disappearances

Between October and December 2015, Minhai’s four colleagues from the bookstore Causeway Bay Books – Lui Bo, Lam Wing-kee, Cheung Chi-ping, and Lee Bo – go missing.

17 January 2016: Forced confession on CCTV

Gui Minhai resurfaces in a forced confession, recorded at an undisclosed location in China, broadcast on Chinese state television channel CCTV. In the confession, he claims to have returned to China voluntarily to turn himself in for a crime supposedly committed in 2003.

28 February 2016: Second forced confession on Phoenix TV

Gui Minhai and his associates appear in a second forced confession aired on Chinese television channel Phoenix TV. They confess to distributing unlicensed books on the Mainland.

17 October 2017: Placed in residential surveillance

Swedish diplomats are told by Chinese officials that Gui Minhai has been “released”, which is widely reported, however, he is in reality placed under residential surveillance in Ningbo, Zhejiang. Read statements by RSF here, and by Human Rights Watch here. During this period, he is allowed contact with his family. He can move around the city accompanied by minders, but is not allowed to leave China.

20 January 2018: Apprehended on train to Beijing

Minhai is apprehended again by people who identified themselves as police while travelling on a train toward Beijing accompanied by two Swedish diplomats.

9 February 2018: Third forced confession

Minhai delivers a third forced confession published by several Chinese newspapers, including Hong Kong paper the South China Morning Post. It is claimed that his Chinese citizenship has been reinstated, and that he is no longer a Swedish national.

25 February 2020: Sentenced to ten years in prison

The Ningbo People’s Intermediate Court announces that Gui Minhai has been sentenced to ten years in prison for “illegally providing intelligence overseas”. The Swedish government was not notified of the trial, and has not been given access to the judgment. Read statements by RSF here, Amnesty International here, Human Rights Watch here, and PEN America here.

2020–present: No news

Chinese authorities have shared no news on Gui Minhai’s whereabouts, health, or treatment in prison.