- China says it has formally arrested Australian journalist Cheng Lei with “illegally supplying state secrets overseas” roughly six months after she was first detained
- According to Australia’s Foreign Minister Marise Payne, Cheng was arrested on February 5 but was originally detained in August last year
- Payne said the charges against Cheng were “broad” and that she expected the investigation to continue for months
- Cheng hosted a business show on the English Channel of China’s largest state media broadcaster and was a high-profile anchor on its English-language channel CGTN
- Tensions between Australia and China have been high over the last 12 months, after Canberra spearheaded calls for an international investigation into the origin of COVID-19
China says it has formally arrested Australian journalist Cheng Lei with “illegally supplying state secrets overseas” roughly six months after she was first detained.
Cheng was arrested on February 5, according to Australia’s Foreign Minister Marise Payne. She hosted a business show on the English channel of China’s largest state media broadcaster CCTV and was a high-profile anchor on its English-language channel CGTN.
She was originally detained in August last year and held under a form of detention that allows Chinese police to imprison and question a suspect for up to six months without giving them access to lawyers.
Payne said the Australian government “has raised its serious concerns about Ms Cheng’s detention regularly at senior levels, including about her welfare and conditions of detention.”
Cheng has two children in Australia and has been visited six times by Australian officials since the start of her detention, most recently at the end of January.
Payne said the charges against Cheng were “broad” and that she expected the investigation to continue for months. However, when asked if the Australian Government believed the allegations against Cheng were baseless, she said Australia was “seeking further advice in relation to the charges.”
Tensions between Australia and China have been high over the last 12 months after Canberra spearheaded calls for an international investigation into the origin of COVID-19, prompting Beijing to respond with sweeping trade reprisals.
Shortly after Cheng’s August detention was revealed, two Australian foreign correspondents were flown out of China with help from Australian consular officials after the pair were questioned by China’s state security ministry.