Dong Yuyu, deputy director of the Commentary Department of the Communist Party newspaper Guangming Daily, was prosecuted by the authorities for espionage as a "foreign spy". He may face a severe sentence of more than 10 years, or even the death penalty.

(taken from the Internet)

[International News Center/Comprehensive Report] Fu Cha (Li Yanhe), editor-in-chief of Taiwan’s Eight Banners Culture Publishing House, was arrested when he went to China to visit relatives. So far, there has been no news. Dong Yuyu, a well-known Chinese writer and deputy director of the commentary department of the Communist Party’s "Guangming Daily" , after being detained for more than a year, was recently prosecuted by the authorities for being a "foreign agent" espionage. He may face severe punishment of more than 10 years, or even the death penalty.

Based on reports from the Voice of America (VOA) Chinese website, Radio Free Asia (RFA), and the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and Washington Post, Dong Yuyu, born in 1962, graduated from the Law Department of Peking University in 1987 with a master's degree in law. He used to be a Nieman Fellow at Harvard University in the United States, a visiting scholar at Keio University in Japan, and a professor at the Graduate School of Public Policy (Graduate School) at Hokkaido University.

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According to reports, Dong Yuyu, who just turned 61 this month, participated in the Tiananmen Square democracy movement in 1989 when she was young, and worked for Guangming Daily, one of the five major party media of the CCP, for more than 30 years. She was only three months away from retirement when she was arrested.

Dong has been interacting extensively with expats, including American and Japanese diplomats and journalists, and has sharply observed and criticized Chinese society from a liberal perspective.

Dong's family members have been reluctant to disclose information, hoping that the authorities will reduce or drop the charges against him, but after being informed last month that Dong's case will be prosecuted, the family was forced to issue a statement on the 24th, pointing out that Dong Yuyu met with A Japanese diplomat met at the Xinqiao Hotel in central Beijing and the two were detained together.

The Japanese diplomat was questioned and released hours later, but Dong has been detained in a detention center in southern Beijing.

The Japanese government asked China to apologize afterwards, but the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded that the Japanese diplomat had engaged in activities "incompatible with his status" in China.

Authorities' investigation into Dong's dealings with Japanese diplomats, including the Japanese ambassador to China, and his involvement in foreign university scholarship programs means the Chinese government views the Japanese embassy and foreign scholarship programs as spies, the family said organize.

According to reports, given the nearly 100 percent conviction rate in the Chinese judicial system, Dong will almost certainly be convicted and sentenced to a sentence of more than 10 years in prison; for minor cases, he may be sentenced to 3 to 10 years, with a maximum sentence of life imprisonment; If the circumstances are particularly bad, the death penalty may be imposed.

It's unclear when Dong's trial will begin, but more than 60 prominent current and former journalists and academics have signed an open letter calling for reconsideration of the prosecution of Dong Yuyu, including Bob Woodward of the Washington Post's Watergate scandal. ), Matthew Pottinger, a former Wall Street Journal China correspondent who served as the Trump administration’s deputy national security adviser, and others.

The open letter pointed out that in their interactions with Dong Yuyu, "there was no trickery or espionage in the slightest", "If even these meetings can be regarded as evidence of espionage by Chinese people, who would want to interview China and Chinese journalists, What about scholars or diplomats?"

The report pointed out that Dong Yuyu's case is the latest example of the CCP's clampdown on media professionals, and it is also the latest sign that the boundaries of behavior are being redrawn during Xi Jinping's third term.

Cheng Lei, who for many years was the host of China Global Television Network (CGTN), China Central Television's international channel, has been detained since 2020 on charges involving state security.

Haze Fan, a Chinese employee of Bloomberg's Beijing branch, was detained by the authorities for more than a year before being released on bail because of "suspected involvement in activities endangering national security".

The report pointed out that Dong Yuyu's case shows that the Chinese government is becoming more and more extreme in order to prevent Chinese citizens from interacting with foreigners who are regarded as "external subversive forces".