A Chinese activist who fled to Taiwan last month and urged authorities there not to deport him said he had arrived in Canada and obtained political asylum.

Chen Siming said last month on X, that he had fled China in July and arrived in Taiwan two months later.

He urged Taiwanese authorities not to send him back because he was seeking political asylum in the United States or Canada.

Self-ruled Taiwan has restrictions on travellers from China – which claims the island as its territory – and so Mr Chen was not able to enter. He posted on X from Taipei international airport’s transit area.

Mr Chen said in his latest post he had arrived in Vancouver on Thursday.

“I was able to successfully obtain political asylum in Canada,” he said, thanking human rights organisations, as well as the governments of Taiwan and Canada, and the UN refugee agency.

“This kindness… will never be forgotten,” he said.

A Canadian national flag can be seen in the background of one of two selfie photos Chen posted with his message.

朋友们：
10月5号我已到达加拿大温哥华。我能顺利得到加拿大政治庇护，是因为网友们的关注，国际媒体的大力报道，朋友们的支持，还有NGO和人权组织的帮助，以及台湾和加拿大两国政府与联合国难民暑等三方秉持人道关怀的精神对我案子的迅速处理。
此恩此德思明终生难忘！我衷心地感谢大家！谢谢！谢谢 pic.twitter.com/6AsqT25bwl

— 陈思明 (@csm8964) October 8, 2023

Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council, which manages relations with Beijing, confirmed that Mr Chen was no longer in Taiwan.

AFP has not independently verified Chen’s account.

The activist, who was based in China’s southern province of Hunan, had vocally supported Hong Kong protesters in 2019 when the city was gripped by massive demonstrations calling for more autonomy from Beijing.

According to Radio Free Asia (RFA), Mr Chen travelled to Laos after leaving China in July before crossing into Thailand.

However, due to concerns about being sent to immigration prison in Thailand – a country with a track record of deporting dissidents – he bought a return ticket to China that transited Taiwan, RFA said.

Two Chinese dissidents spent more than four months trapped at Taiwan’s airport after fleeing China in 2019.

Immigration officials refused to grant them entry because they did not have valid visas, but the democratic government was also wary of deporting them.

They were allowed a temporary stay outside the airport after 125 days and have since left for Canada, where both were granted asylum status.