Australian Academic Faces Espionage Trial in China

SYDNEY - Australia is urging China to apply “basic international standards of justice” to the case of a Chinese-born Australian writer on trial in Beijing for espionage.

After more than two years in detention, Australian Yang Hengjun will be tried Thursday for espionage in a closed court in China. Yang has been held in custody since January 2019 after flying into the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou for the Lunar New Year. He was placed under investigation for allegedly harming China's national security, but was later charged with spying, although officials have given no specific details about his alleged crimes. Yang is a former Chinese diplomat but became an Australian citizen and was based in Sydney. During his incarceration in China, the Australian government said the writer had been held in “harsh conditions.”