On Friday, November 29th, a family member told Reuters that a Beijing court sentenced former senior editor of the “Guangming Daily” newspaper, Dong Yuyu, to seven years in prison on charges of espionage.
According to a statement from the National Press Club of the United States, in February 2022, 62-year-old former “Guangming Daily” editor and reporter Dong Yuyu was detained by Beijing police while having lunch with a Japanese diplomat and later accused of espionage.
On Friday, a large number of police were stationed outside the Beijing Second Intermediate People’s Court, with at least 7 police cars parked nearby. Reuters reporters were asked to vacate the area.
An American diplomat told Reuters that they were barred from attending the sentencing hearing.
The National Press Club stated in September that since the closed-door trial in July 2023, Dong Yuyu has been held in a Beijing prison awaiting sentencing.
Dong Yuyu is known for writing commentary with a liberal leaning and is recognized for his keen observations on Chinese society. Over the years, he has frequently engaged in face-to-face exchanges with diplomats and journalists from various countries outside their embassies.
The Japanese diplomat who met with him was also detained by the Chinese authorities for several hours, prompting strong protests from the Japanese Foreign Ministry. The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson at the time stated that the diplomat was engaged in activities in China “inconsistent with his identity.” The Japanese diplomat was later released.
On April 24th, 2023, Dong Yuyu’s family issued a public statement for the first time regarding the case, stating that the Chinese authorities’ accusations were fabricated and likely aimed at suppressing dissent.
The family statement mentioned that Dong Yuyu had participated in the prestigious Nieman Fellowship at Harvard and had served as a visiting scholar and visiting professor at Keio University and Hokkaido University in Japan.
In the statement, his family expressed concerns that the Chinese authorities might be attempting to suppress intellectuals and prevent them from meeting with foreigners. A family member expressed shock over Dong’s detention as the government had not raised objections previously to his interactions with foreigners, and now it seemed to serve as the basis for espionage charges.
Dong Yuyu graduated from the law school at Peking University and began working at the “Guangming Daily” in 1987. He had participated in the 1989 Tiananmen Square student protests. After a year of labor, he returned to Beijing but retained his position at the newspaper.
He had served as the deputy editor of the commentary section at the “Guangming Daily” and had written opinion pieces in Chinese media and liberal academic journals, covering topics ranging from legal reform to social issues. He also co-edited a book promoting the rule of law in China. His articles advocated for moderate reforms while avoiding direct criticism of the Chinese Communist Party leader, Xi Jinping.
Several non-governmental organizations advocating for press freedom have called for the release of Dong Yuyu. An online petition requesting his release has gathered over 700 signatures from journalists, scholars, and NGO workers.
Ann Marie Lipinski, the curator of the Nieman Foundation at Harvard University, said, “We stand with many others in the hope that he (Dong Yuyu) will be released and reunited with his family.”
In February this year, Australian writer Yang Hengjun was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve on espionage charges by a Beijing court.