Australian spy novelist Yang Hengjun faces China espionage trial

The 56-year-old was detained in early 2019 in Guangzhou and is one of a number of foreigners facing charges of espionage.

Melbourne, Australia – Chinese-Australian citizen Yang Hengjun is expected to go on trial in China on Thursday, charged with espionage and accused of acting as a spy for the Australian government. In a letter written in March and released on the eve of the trial, Yang was stoic. “There is nothing more liberating than having one’s worst fears realised,” he wrote in the letter, which was published in Australian media. “I have no fear now. I will never compromise.