After three years in prison: Chinese-Australian journalist released again in Syria accused of torture by UN court

Chinese-Australian journalist Cheng Lei has been released more than three years after her arrest in China. The 48-year-old news presenter flew to Australia and was met at Melbourne airport by Foreign Minister Penny Wong, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Wednesday. She has now been reunited with her two children. The case made many international headlines.

Cheng Lei, who worked for Chinese state television, was arrested in August 2020. The Public Prosecution Service accused her of passing on state secrets abroad. What exactly it was about remained unclear. If convicted, which was repeatedly postponed, the maximum penalty would have been life imprisonment. The exact circumstances of her release were initially unclear.

The Australian government had repeatedly raised “serious concerns” about the journalist’s welfare and prison conditions. She herself had only written a letter from prison in August stating that she had only had direct access to sunlight for only ten hours a year since her arrest. Only one 30-minute visit by a consular officer was allowed per month.

Chinese-born Cheng Lei, who emigrated to Australia with her family at the age of 10, was working for Chinese foreign state broadcaster CGTN when she was arrested on August 13, 2020. It was not until six months later that she was formally taken into custody. Her detention came amid escalating tensions between China and Australia and led to accusations that Beijing was trying to put pressure on Canberra. (saw/sda/dpa)