Working in China involves some risks. Photo: Puddingworld, CC BY-SA 4.0/Wikimedia Commons




In an episode that Taiwan describes as “bizarre,” China reportedly detained four employees at a plant that makes Apple products.
The facility is owned by Foxconn, a Taiwanese company, but it is located in Zhengzhou, China. Relations between the two countries are tense.
Apple caught in China/Taiwan confrontation
When the Communist Party took over mainland China at the end of the Chinese Civil War, the former government of the country retreated to Taiwan and declared independence in 1949. Many decades later, China still considers Taiwan a breakaway province and periodically threatens to reconquer the island.
China recently threatened to arrest and even execute what it calls “Taiwan independence die-hards,” according to The Wall Street Journal. And that may include the four Foxconn employees detained by local authorities.
The WSJ spoke with Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council. “The council described the allegations as bizarre and said improper detention could severely damage investor confidence in China,” the WSJ reported. “It urged Chinese authorities to conduct a swift and transparent investigation into the matter.”
Apple is caught in the middle. As noted, the employees work at the giant Foxconn facility where iPhone and other Apple products are assembled. But such events are among the reasons Apple and Foxconn are working to transition iPhone assembly to India.