China said yesterday that it has charged a reporter for a Singapore newspaper with spying for Taiwan, four months after detaining him.
A report by the official Xinhua news agency said Ching Cheong (程翔), a China correspondent for Singapore's the Straits Times, had confessed to the charges, including using hundreds of thousands of dollars to buy classified political and military secrets.
Ching, a China-born Hong Kong resident, has not been heard from since he was detained April 22 while visiting China. His family has denied he did anything wrong.
Ching, 55, was allegedly recruited by Taiwan's National Security Bureau in 2000 and "set up a number of channels for espionage in both Hong Kong and the island," Xinhua said.
Using the name Chen Yuanchun, Ching bought "a great deal of information about China's political, economic and especially military affairs, including some classified as `top-secret' or `confidential,' and passed it to the Taiwan intelligence," the Xinhua report said.
His actions were "detrimental" to national security, the report said.
It was the first time the Beijing government has given any details of the accusations against Ching.
It was not immediately clear if Ching would face trial. Under Chinese law, the penalty for spying can range from decades in prison to death.
In Taipei, Mainland Affairs Council Chairman Joseph Wu (
Wu said Ching's arrest might be part of a "kill a chicken to scare the monkeys" policy to intimidate other Hong Kong journalists, who are known for their aggressive pursuit of stories.
He feared the move might cause Hong Kong media to engage in self-censorship to avoid offending Chinese officials.
Ching's wife, Mary Lau (
On Thursday, she insisted her husband was innocent.
"We firmly believe that he didn't do things that harm the country," she said on Hong Kong's Commercial Radio.
Lau has said police apprehended Ching as he tried to obtain a manuscript of a book on late former Chinese leader Zhao Ziyang (
The Straits Times posted Ching in Taiwan in 1998, and transferred him to Hong Kong in 2000.
Xinhua said Ching was given "several million Hong Kong dollars" -- the equivalent of hundreds of thousands of US dollars -- to use for spying.
It said Ching had "confessed the whole process of his spying activities for the Taiwan intelligence" during interrogation by Chinese security agents.
Irene Ngoo, a spokeswoman for the Straits Times' publisher Singapore Press Holdings, said the Chinese Embassy had informed the company of Ching's charges.
"We have made another request to have access to Ching Cheong and to seek legal representation for him," Ngoo said in a statement. "The Chinese Embassy said it would convey our request to the Beijing authorities."
According to the US-based Committee to Protect Journalists, China was the world's leading jailer of reporters for the sixth consecutive year last year.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS