Setback for Beijing-Canberra ties as activist writer gets death sentence

Chinese court’s decision seen as a blow to Aussie govt efforts to stabilise’ relationship

- Jonathan Pearlman

High-level meetings had resumed, China dropped most of its economic sanctions on Australian exports and Mr Albanese visited Beijing in November 2023- the first trip by an Australian leader in seven years.

But these steps towards improving relations came to a shuddering halt on Feb 5, as a Beijing court delivered a death sentence to Australian citizen Yang Hengjun, a pro-democracy activist and writer who was born in China.

The court suspended the verdict for two years so long as Yang, 58, a former state security agent of China who was found guilty of "espionage", does not commit any offences.

The sentence came as a shock to Australia, which had been buoyed by the release in October 2023 of Australian journalist Cheng Lei, who was freed after three years in prison, apparently for breaking an embargo by a few minutes.

The release in September 2021 of two Canadians accused of espionage, Mr Michael Spavor and Mr Michael Kovrig, had also raised hopes that China might release Yang. The pair were freed after a bid to extradite Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou from Canada was dropped.

But the decision to impose the death penalty on Yang - a father-of-two allegedly convicted over an offence that occurred 28 years ago came as a severe blow to efforts by Canberra to repair or "stabilise", as Mr Albanese warily describes it - the relationship with China.