The Squiz

Five years after being imprisoned in a Chinese jail, Australian writer and democracy activist Dr Yang Hengjun has been sentenced to death by a Beijing court. The ruling made public yesterday includes a caveat that, pending Dr Yang’s “good behaviour”, the sentence can be converted to a life sentence after 2 years. The reaction here in Oz came in strong and fast – Foreign Minister Penny Wong called it a “harrowing” and “appalling” decision. She says the government “will be communicating our response in the strongest terms”, including summoning China’s ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian for a ‘please explain’ yesterday afternoon.

What led up to this?

Dr Yang was arrested at China’s Guangzhou airport in 2019, and while the charges against him have never been disclosed, the Chinese Government accused him of spying – something he denies. His trial was then held behind closed doors in 2021, with Yang having limited access to lawyers. The words “political persecution” have been used by his supporters, who say he’s being punished by China “for his criticism of human rights abuses in China and his advocacy for universal values such as human rights, democracy and the rule of law”. Since his arrest, the Australian Government has called on China to apply basic standards of justice and procedural fairness in his case, and there was renewed hope last October when fellow Aussie Cheng Lei (who was detained under similar circumstances) was released, but it was to no avail… 

So what’s next?

Australia will continue its advocacy for Dr Yang, and reports say that there may be avenues for him to appeal the sentence up until February 15. But supporters say his poor health might prevent that… “Five years of arbitrary detention and torture have taken a heavy toll on his health. He is now critically ill,” friend Dr Feng Chongyi says. For the Coalition’s part, Foreign Affairs spokesperson Simon Birmingham said the situation was “a terrible reminder of the stark differences between our systems of government and systems of justice”. Daniela Gavshon from Human Rights Watch agreed, saying his death sentence “on such scant information is deeply worrying.” Beyond that, experts say it is a blow to Oz-China relations, which have been warming up. To keep that thaw going, it was noted that Wong has stopped short of recalling Australia’s ambassador to China.