China knocks down 'Freedom of Press' yet again; arrests Australian Journalist Cheng Lei
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Beijing, Feb 9: China's august detention of Chinese-Australian Journalist Cheng Lei, subject to the suspicion of 'illegally supplying state secrets overseas' of China has raised alarming concerns for the country's deteriorating relations with Australia, after the Chinese govt formally arrested Cheng Lei on Feb 5. Disputes regarding trade, territorial issues, alleged espionage and COVID 19 had already degraded the Chinese-Australian relations. The journalist worked as an anchor for the Chinese sate-run CGTN.
The journalist was observed to have written a number of posts on Facebook criticizing the Chinese Prez Xi Jinping about Beijing's response to the COVID 19 pandemic outbreak primarily in Wuhan. Cheng's former colleagues and press freedom advocates have expressed concern for the well-being of the Chinese-Australian journalist Cheng Lei who was arrested on Feb 5 on suspicion of 'supplying state secrets' by China. Eric Olander, who worked with Cheng in Singapore in 2003, has described the incident as it was "heartbreaking to see what she's now having to endure".
Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said on Feb 8, that "Amid deteriorating Australia-China relations, Cheng, an anchor with Chinese state-run CGTN was formally arrested by the Chinese government on suspicion of "illegally supplying state secrets overseas", six months after she was detained." Payne has shared that "Canberra had raised "serious concerns" about Cheng's detention during the previous six months." "We expect basic standards of justice, procedural fairness and humane treatment to be met, in accordance with international norms," she added.
The Alliance for Journalists' Freedom, an Australia-based advocacy group, called for Cheng's immediate release. The group's spokesman Peter Greste said, "China's record on press freedom is already deeply troubling. In the absence of evidence, Cheng's arrest only adds to the impression that Beijing does not care about the freedom of the press. Her case stands as a clear warning to other journalists to support the govt or risk being imprisoned, too."
Tech podcaster Elliott Zaagman, who once shared an apartment building with Cheng and appeared on her show, said her arrest "hit very close to home" among the expatriate community in Beijing. "It's distressing to think of the conditions she is under, and what sort of emotional and physical trauma she may be enduring," said Zaagman. "My thoughts are with her family, particularly her two young children."