Official announcements from Chinese legislative bodies or government agencies

China Sentences Journalist Dong Yuyu to Seven Years for Espionage After Meeting Japanese Diplomat

Nov 29, 2024, 11:00 AM

A Chinese court has sentenced veteran journalist Dong Yuyu to seven years in prison on espionage charges. Dong, 62, a former editor at the Communist Party newspaper Guangming Daily and a former Harvard Nieman Fellow, was detained in February 2022 after meeting with a Japanese diplomat in Beijing. Dong's family has rejected the charges as "patently absurd," stating that the conviction marks the "bankruptcy of the justice system in China," and they intend to support his appeal. Press freedom advocates have criticized the opaque and politicized nature of the case, viewing the sentencing as an attack on the free press and a warning that engaging in people-to-people exchanges could lead to espionage accusations. Dong was known for his observations on Chinese politics and economics and had spent decades engaging with diplomats, academics, and journalists from Japan and the U.S., activities that are common in international journalism.