Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Cheng Lei arrived in Melbourne earlier today and has been reunited with her family after three years in detention.
Ms Cheng was working as a broadcast journalist at Chinese state-owned media, CGTN when she was arrested on August 13, 2020, accused of “supplying state secrets overseas” — an allegation she rejected.
She was put in Residential Surveillance at a Dedicated Facility — a form of detention criticised by human rights groups in which detainees are unable to have contact with the outside world.
The ministry said it filed an investigation, then “the Beijing Municipal State Security Bureau took criminal compulsory measures against Cheng Lei in accordance with the law in August 2020”.
When asked if Ms Cheng had been pardoned by the Chinese government, Mr Albanese said: “No, it [her sentence] was completed with time served in detention being taken into account.”
Mr Albanese is expected to visit China by the end of the year, with the prime minister saying he is trying to find a “mutually agreeable time” with the Chinese government.
While Ms Cheng is now home safe, Mr Albanese could not provide an update on the fate of Australian man Yang Hengjun, who has been detained in China since 2019.
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Ms Cheng was working as a broadcast journalist at Chinese state-owned media, CGTN when she was arrested on August 13, 2020, accused of “supplying state secrets overseas” — an allegation she rejected.
She was put in Residential Surveillance at a Dedicated Facility — a form of detention criticised by human rights groups in which detainees are unable to have contact with the outside world.
The ministry said it filed an investigation, then “the Beijing Municipal State Security Bureau took criminal compulsory measures against Cheng Lei in accordance with the law in August 2020”.
When asked if Ms Cheng had been pardoned by the Chinese government, Mr Albanese said: “No, it [her sentence] was completed with time served in detention being taken into account.”
Mr Albanese is expected to visit China by the end of the year, with the prime minister saying he is trying to find a “mutually agreeable time” with the Chinese government.
While Ms Cheng is now home safe, Mr Albanese could not provide an update on the fate of Australian man Yang Hengjun, who has been detained in China since 2019.
The original article contains 793 words, the summary contains 180 words. Saved 77%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!