Failed Boat Trip Shows Fear of China's Reach Into Thailand
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Chris Blake and Ting Shi
Updated on
Song Zhiyu hid for 10 hours in the luggage compartment of a bus on the final leg of his escape from China to Thailand, a country where he planned to seek asylum.
Almost two years later, with his application still pending and fearing a greater reach by Chinese authorities, he boarded a small boat at the resort town of Pattaya and set off with eight other Chinese in the hope of reaching New Zealand, more than 5,500 miles (8,850 kilometers) away.