HONG KONG: Singapore journalist Ching Cheong has been jailed for
five years by a Chinese court for spying, Hong Kong television said
on Thursday.
Ching was put on trial behind closed doors two weeks ago after
being detained for more than a year on charges of spying for
Taiwan.
"He has been given five years. I'm sorry, but I cannot give any
further details," lawyer He Peihua said in an interview seen on
Cable TV News in Hong Kong.
James Lung, coordinator of the Hong Kong-based Rescue Ching Cheong
Alliance, told AFP the court also ordered the confiscation of
300,000 yuan (37,500 dollars) of property.
"We think it's very unfair, because from the beginning to the end
nobody knew what happened," Lung said. He added the family would
consider appealing the verdict.
In response to the media queries on the case of Mr Ching Cheong,
the publisher of The Straits Times, Singapore Press Holdings has
issued a press statement noting with concern the sentence meted
out.
The company has appealed to the Chinese authorities to show Mr
Ching Cheong leniency and compassion on account of his poor
health.
His wife Lau has always maintained his innocence, saying Ching
apparently fell into a trap set over sensitive materials on late
Communist Party chief Zhao Ziyang, who was sacked for opposing the
1989 Tiananmen crackdown.
She also said Ching had helped an academic at a Chinese government
think-tank compile reports on Hong Kong and Taiwan commissioned by
the central authorities, and gave advice on cross-strait
relations.
The problem was he may have given too much information on mainland
China to Taiwan authorities, according to Hong Kong media. The
charges also seem to suggest this.
The verdict also deprived Ching of his political rights for one
year, Xinhua said.
This is a routine addition to jail sentences in China, with little
practical significance, as it means he cannot vote or run in
elections in lawmaking assemblies.- AFP
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