Beijing court gives Australian writer suspended death sentence
SYDNEY/BEIJING (Reuters) — A Beijing court on Monday handed Australian writer Yang Hengjun a suspended death sentence, threatening a recent rebound in bilateral ties that followed several years of strained relations between Beijing and Canberra.
The sentence, handed down five years after Yang was detained in China and three years after his closed-door trial on espionage charges, shocked his family and supporters.
Yang, a pro-democracy blogger, is an Australian citizen born in China who was working in New York before his arrest at Guangzhou airport in 2019. He had been accused of spying for a country China has not publicly identified and the details of the case against him have not been made public.
Sydney-based scholar Feng Chongyi said a court on Monday delivered a suspended death sentence that would convert to life imprisonment after two years.
It was a “serious case of injustice,” he said, adding that Yang had denied the charges.
“He is punished by the Chinese government for his criticism of human rights abuses in China and his advocacy for universal values such as human rights, democracy and rule of law,” he said.
He urged the Australian government to seek medical parole for Yang, saying five years of detention had taken a heavy toll on his health.
Yang’s sentence was confirmed by another human rights lawyer in Beijing who has been following his case.
“He was found guilty of all charges,” the lawyer said, asking to remain anonymous because of the sensitivity of the matter.
Australia is “appalled” at the court’s decision and has called in China’s ambassador, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Monday.
Wong said in a statement on Monday the Australian government understood the sentence can be commuted to life imprisonment after two years if the individual does not commit any serious crimes in that period.