Cheng Lei
China formally arrested an Australian citizen who was a former news anchor on Chinese state television, aggravating a case that contributed to tensions between Beijing and Canberra.
Cheng Lei, a Chinese-born Australian who recently worked for state broadcaster CGTN, was formally arrested in China on February 5 after six months of detention, Australian Chancellor Marise Payne’s office said in a statement on Monday. Chinese authorities reported that Cheng was “arrested on suspicion of illegally supplying state secrets abroad”, the statement said.
China had said in September that Cheng was “suspected of carrying out criminal activities that endanger China’s national security, ”one of the most serious accusations ever made against a foreign journalist based in the country.
She was detained in mid-August under a provision that allowed her to be detained for up to six months without charge or access to a lawyer.
Australian embassy officials have visited Cheng six times since his arrest – most recently on January 27 – according to a bilateral consular agreement with China, the statement said.
Australia “raised its serious concerns about Ms. Cheng’s detention regularly at higher levels, including her welfare and conditions of detention”, the statement said. “We hope that the basic standards of justice, procedural justice and humane treatment are met, in accordance with international standards.”
Rising tensions
The case came to light amid deteriorating relations between China and Australia, raising fears that Beijing had chosen Cheng to put pressure on Canberra. Tensions worsened after Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s government called for an independent investigation into the origins of the coronavirus in April, a move seen in China in support of US President Donald Trump’s efforts to blame it for the pandemic .
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s government imposed tariffs on Australian barley, banned products from a number of meat factories and launched an anti-dumping investigation on its wine exports. Still, China remains Australia’s largest trading partner, driven by the country’s appetite for resources like iron ore and coal.
Cheng has presented business programs as an anchor for CGTN since 2012 and was well known among the small circle of diplomats and journalists in Beijing. She had previously served as a CNBC correspondent in China, after graduating from the University of Queensland with a trade degree and serving as an accountant at Cadbury Schweppes, according to her LinkedIn profile.
Cheng’s arrest also coincided with a specific dispute between Australia and China over the efforts of both spy agencies to question foreign journalists. China withdrew four journalists from Australia’s state media after authorities raided their homes, while two Australian correspondents left China after state security officials approached them for questioning.
One of the Australian journalists, Mike Smith of the Australian Financial Review, said in September that Chinese officials asked him about Cheng, among other things, before he was allowed to leave. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said separately that the Australian and Cheng journalists ‘cases were unrelated to the raids on Chinese journalists’ homes.
– With the help of Jason Scott and James Mayger