A man claiming to be a former Chinese state TV host showed up at Taiwan's main airport demanding humanitarian protection, and it's bad news for Beijing's image even as it puts Taiwan in an awkward spot.

• The man, identifying himself as Cheng Wanjun, flew from Thailand to Taiwan and was supposed to transfer onward to Beijing, but instead posted a video online begging for help while still at the airport.
• He says he used to be a magazine editor and a program host at China's state broadcaster, and was jailed for six years after colleagues secretly recorded and reported critical comments he made at a work meeting.
• After his release this year, he says he published writings from prison that put him at risk, and the UN refugee agency's office in Thailand flagged him as high-risk, but couldn't guarantee his safety there, pushing him to try Taiwan instead.
• Taiwan's immigration agency is holding him in a restricted airport area, feeding him but not letting him move freely, while officials from multiple agencies decide what to do with him.
• Online reaction is split, with some suspicious he skipped flying to a Western country instead, and others wanting Taiwan to send back all people fleeing China, calling some of them disguised agents for Beijing.

Outlook: Taiwan's government is expected to decide soon whether to grant him temporary humanitarian protection or turn him away.