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Diplomat's asylum case `a priority'

The asylum application of a former Chinese diplomat who claims to be part of a 1,000-member spy network in Australia is being treated "as a matter of priority," Australia's immigration minister said yesterday.

Chen Yonglin (陳用林), 37, left his post as a consul for political affairs at China's consulate in Sydney last month and approached immigration officials seeking political asylum in Australia.

His initial application was rejected and he is now in hiding with his wife and daughter as the government considers an alternate request for a temporary visa normally reserved for refugees fleeing persecution.

Immigration Minister Amanda Vanstone said Chen's temporary visa application was lodged on June 3 and was being processed "in a normal manner, but as a priority."

"Far from dithering over Mr. Chen's protection visa application, the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs is processing the application as a matter of priority," Vanstone said in a statement.

spy network

Chen's case made headlines earlier this month when he emerged from hiding to tell a pro-democracy rally in Sydney that he had been a member of a 1,000-member spy network tasked with monitoring Chinese dissident groups in Australia, including Falun Gong members and Taiwanese independence activists.

In a statement read before a Sydney rally attended by about 100 people yesterday, Chen encouraged his fellow citizens to "free themselves [from] the spirit bondage and the party chains" of Chinese communism.

"Now it's the time to smash and break the chains holding your body and soul, and embrace a life of freedom as I did walking out of shadows into a new life, no matter how difficult it is," Chen reportedly said in the statement read by Sonya Bryskine, international editor of the Epoch Times, an English-language newspaper supported by the Falun Gong spiritual movement.

`shake off fear'

"Democracy and human rights are what we Chinese need urgently," the statement said. "Let us be brave and join hands together to shake off all the fear, terror and grief laid upon us by the ruling communist regime in China."

Chen has repeatedly told the media he fears for his safety if he is forced to return to Australia.

He told the Nine television network's 60 Minutes program on Sunday that he could face up to 10 years in prison or the death penalty for disclosing government secrets.

"Serious punishment will be waiting for me," he said on the program.

China's ambassador to Australia, Fu Ying (傅瑩), has denied Chen's spy claims and said he would be not be harmed if he returned to Beijing.

The case comes at a sensitive time for Australia-China relations, but both governments have said Chen's asylum bid will not affect their economic or political relationship.

China is Australia's third largest trading partner, with trade worth about A$29 billion (US$22 billion) a year.

The two countries have just begun negotiations over a multibillion-dollar free-trade deal, and Australia is also set to begin delivering liquid natural gas to Guangdong Province next year as part of a long-term A$25 billion supply contract -- Canberra's largest export deal.
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