SYDNEY – China has accused an Australian journalist of sharing state secrets overseas after she was detained about six months ago, and has expressed concern about foreign media intimidation and the deepening of a diplomatic dispute that has toppled bilateral trade.
Cheng Lei, an anchor for the Chinese government’s English-language television news channel, was officially charged on Friday after being detained by local authorities earlier on August 13. Me. Cheng’s arrest and the evacuation of two other Australian reporters from China weeks later illustrate the dangers journalists can pose if they work in the country.
The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it had repeatedly expressed concern about her situation with senior Chinese officials. China does not have the charges that Ms. Cheng faces, not set out, including what state secrets it was alleged or to which country it was disclosed.
Me. Cheng was trained at the Australian University of Queensland and has been working for CGTN since 2012, according to her LinkedIn profile during her detention. Australian embassy officials have visited Ms Cheng six times since she was detained, most recently on 27 January.
A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman was not immediately available for comment.
Diplomatic relations between Beijing and Canberra have deteriorated since Australia began seeking support from central European leaders for an investigation into any early mistakes that contributed to the coronavirus pandemic. Chinese officials view Australia’s attitude as politically motivated.
Tensions escalated in July when Australia suspended its extradition treaty with Hong Kong and would give the city’s residents a way to stay permanently in response to China imposing a national security law on the semi-autonomous city.
The same month, Australia upgraded its travel warning for mainland China, saying Chinese authorities had detained foreigners because they allegedly endangered national security and that Australians were at risk of arbitrary detention.
More recently, China and Australia have traded barbs on everything from barley and wine tariffs to a tweet by a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, of a doctored statue of an Australian soldier stabbing a knife in the throat. An Afghan child likes.
The timing of detentions and convictions of foreign nationals in China often coincided with disputes with other countries, which led diplomats to believe they were related.
Within weeks of Mrs Cheng’s arrest, Bill Birtles, the correspondent for Australian Broadcasting Corp. in Beijing, and Michael Smith, based in Shanghai with the Australian Financial Review, hailed from China after a diplomatic disagreement that saw the couple seek refuge in Australian diplomatic missions while officials negotiated their retirement.
Two Canadian citizens are still being held by Chinese authorities about two years after they were detained within two hours in two Chinese cities, just nine days after the Canadian authorities arrested Meng Wanzhou, chief financial officer of Huawei Technologies Co., on behalf of the USA – an incident that involved Canada in a broader diplomatic row between Washington and Beijing.
Write to David Winning at [email protected]
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