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Thursday, March 31, 2022 6:49:39 PM
Australian TV anchor Cheng Lei faces further wait as Chinese court defers verdict after closed court trial in Beijing
"Australian journalist Cheng Lei formally arrested in China after six months' detention
"Australia revokes Chinese scholar visas and targets media officials, prompting furious China response
"Media bosses unite to demand law changes after police raids on ABC, News Corp journalists
"Why the raids on Australian media present a clear threat to democracy""""
By East Asia correspondent Bill Birtles
Posted 21h ago 21 hours ago, updated 10h ago
[...]
Mystery shrouds case against Cheng Lei
The Chinese Government's extreme secrecy around the case has fuelled speculation on the reasons why the Ministry of State Security decided to target Ms Cheng.
In August 2020, Cheng Lei suddenly disappeared from television and couldn't be contacted by friends
or relatives(Source: CGTN)
She worked as one of the faces of Beijing's international news and propaganda channel CGTN at the time of her arrest, where she had held on-air roles as a business journalist since 2012.
During those years she regularly interviewed figures in China's business and finance circles and also sometimes worked as an emcee for events organised by the Australian embassy and the Australian Chamber of Commerce.
Ms Cheng's friend, Haze Fan, a Chinese national and journalist for US media outlet Bloomberg, has also been detained without trial in a national security investigation.
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Authorities have not revealed if the two cases are related.
Several unusually detailed posts on Chinese social media public accounts appeared in the past year, accusing Ms Cheng of betraying the country of her birth without providing details of any particular wrongdoing, relying instead on innuendo.
Some analysts have speculated that her case is linked to the broader deterioration in diplomatic relations between Australia and China.
Ahead of the trial, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne again called for more transparency.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-31/cheng-lei-trial-on-state-secrets-charge-begins-in-beijing/100954176
"Australian journalist Cheng Lei formally arrested in China after six months' detention
"Australia revokes Chinese scholar visas and targets media officials, prompting furious China response
"Media bosses unite to demand law changes after police raids on ABC, News Corp journalists
"Why the raids on Australian media present a clear threat to democracy""""
By East Asia correspondent Bill Birtles
Posted 21h ago 21 hours ago, updated 10h ago
[...]
Mystery shrouds case against Cheng Lei
The Chinese Government's extreme secrecy around the case has fuelled speculation on the reasons why the Ministry of State Security decided to target Ms Cheng.
In August 2020, Cheng Lei suddenly disappeared from television and couldn't be contacted by friends
or relatives(Source: CGTN)
She worked as one of the faces of Beijing's international news and propaganda channel CGTN at the time of her arrest, where she had held on-air roles as a business journalist since 2012.
During those years she regularly interviewed figures in China's business and finance circles and also sometimes worked as an emcee for events organised by the Australian embassy and the Australian Chamber of Commerce.
Ms Cheng's friend, Haze Fan, a Chinese national and journalist for US media outlet Bloomberg, has also been detained without trial in a national security investigation.
Tweet
Authorities have not revealed if the two cases are related.
Several unusually detailed posts on Chinese social media public accounts appeared in the past year, accusing Ms Cheng of betraying the country of her birth without providing details of any particular wrongdoing, relying instead on innuendo.
Some analysts have speculated that her case is linked to the broader deterioration in diplomatic relations between Australia and China.
Ahead of the trial, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne again called for more transparency.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-31/cheng-lei-trial-on-state-secrets-charge-begins-in-beijing/100954176
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