China stepped up a campaign against foreign espionage yesterday, offering rewards ranging from 10,000 yuan to 500,000 yuan (US$1,448 to US$72,380) to citizens who blow the whistle on suspected spies, a state-run newspaper said.
The “pressing” need for new measures to guard against foreign spies is an unfortunate side effect of China’s reform and opening up to the world, the Beijing Daily newspaper said.
“Foreign intelligence organs and other hostile forces have also seized the opportunity to sabotage our country through political infiltration, division and subversion, stealing secrets and collusion,” it said.
The Beijing City National Security Bureau is encouraging citizens to join counterintelligence efforts, by offering rewards for information on spies, it said.
The government has acquired new powers to safeguard China with a national security law passed in 2014, followed by measures on counter-terrorism, the management of foreign non-government bodies and cybersecurity.
Western governments have spoken out against the new measures that they say define China’s national interests too broadly, flagging the risk that they could be used to crack down on dissent.
China says the laws are fitting, given the reality of its national security concerns.
In April last year, China launched a series of warnings against espionage, publicizing rare details of spy cases in state media, and highlighting how romantic relationships may be used to uncover sensitive information.
Rewards to encourage security vigilance are a common government tactic used, for instance, to draw out information on “terrorism” in far western Xinjiang State.
Discovering espionage equipment, such as recording and monitoring devices, could bring extra rewards. For example, fishermen in coastal Jiangsu Province received rewards in January for the discovery of a suspicious device that proved to be collecting data for foreign countries.
People exploiting the new measures to frame rivals would be held accountable, but good faith errors would attract no reprisals, the newspaper said.
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