Veteran Chinese Journalist Dong Yuyu Sentenced to Seven Years for Espionage

A Beijing court has sentenced Dong Yuyu, a veteran Chinese journalist and former editor at Guangming Daily, to seven years in prison for espionage. The verdict, delivered on Friday, has been decried by his family and press freedom advocates as a “grave injustice.” 

Dong, 62, was detained in February 2022 while dining with a Japanese diplomat in Beijing. The diplomat was briefly held but later released. The court’s judgment accused Dong of engaging with individuals it deemed part of “espionage organisations,” including Japan’s embassy in Beijing. 

“Sentencing Yuyu to seven years in prison on no evidence declares to the world the bankruptcy of the justice system in China,” Dong’s family stated. They warned the verdict could have a chilling effect on ordinary citizens and journalists interacting with foreign diplomats. 

The case has drawn widespread criticism, with the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) calling for Dong’s immediate release. Beh Lih Yi, CPJ’s Asia program manager, urged Chinese authorities to “reverse this unjust verdict and protect journalists’ rights to work freely and safely.” 

Dong, a 2007 Nieman Fellow at Harvard University, is known for his moderate reformist views. During his career at Guangming Daily, a Communist Party-affiliated publication, he advocated legal reforms and social improvements, avoiding direct criticism of President Xi Jinping. 

The journalist’s detention and subsequent trial were kept under wraps until March 2023, when his family revealed he would stand trial, ending hopes that the charges might be reduced or dismissed. 

The sentencing comes amid broader concerns over China’s treatment of intellectuals and journalists. In a separate case, Australian pro-democracy writer Yang Hengjun was handed a suspended death sentence for espionage earlier this year. 

The Nieman Foundation for Journalism, along with over 700 academics, journalists, and NGO workers, has called for Dong’s release. Ann Marie Lipinski, curator of the Nieman Foundation, praised Dong as a “talented reporter and author” and expressed hope for his return to his family. 

This verdict has added to fears about the shrinking space for free expression and the targeting of intellectuals in China under the current administration.

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