Australia’s ambassador to China denied entry to trial of Yang Hengjun

Australia’s ambassador to China has labelled the treatment of Yang Hengjun “arbitrary detention” on the morning of the writer’s closed-door trial for espionage charges. The envoy, Graham Fletcher, was on Thursday denied entry to the Beijing court where Yang will be tried after spending more than two years in jail. “The reason given was because of the pandemic situation but the foreign minister has also told us it’s because it’s a national security case,” Fletcher said outside court. “This is deeply regrettable and concerning and unsatisfactory. We’ve had longstanding concerns about this case, including the lack of transparency, and therefore have concluded it is an instance of arbitrary detention.”

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