Australian journalist detained in China on spying charges to face trial
Cheng Lei worked as a TV anchor for Chinese state media for a decade before being detained in 2020 amid worsening diplomatic relations between Australia and China.
Cheng has been separated from her children, aged nine and 11, who were visiting their grandmother in Australia when she was detained.
Australian journalist Cheng Lei will face trial in China next week on charges of supplying state secrets, two years after she was detained by Beijing authorities.
She will be tried in the Beijing No 2 People's Intermediate Court at 9:00 am local (0100 GMT) next Thursday, sources who did not want to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter said on Friday.
Cheng Lei disappeared in August 2020 and was formally arrested for "illegally supplying state secrets overseas" in February last year.
The mother of two was a familiar face on state broadcaster CGTN's English-language channel, conducting interviews with noted CEOs from around the world.
Two people close to the case confirmed to Australian broadcaster ABC that Cheng is due to be tried next Thursday in a Beijing court.
It is unlikely Australian diplomats will be permitted to observe the trial, the report said.
READ MORE: Australian journalist Cheng Lei arrested in China
Tit-for-tat?
Born in Hunan province, Cheng is now an Australian national who emigrated to the country as a child, before returning to China and joining the state broadcaster in 2012.
The timing and lack of information about charges raised speculation that her detention was politically motivated, or tit-for-tat retaliation.
Beijing has reacted angrily to Australia's liberal use of foreign interference laws to block Chinese investment in sensitive sectors and to investigate Chinese influence on the country's public life.
Cheng's detention also came weeks after Australian authorities raided the homes of Chinese state media journalists.
The journalist could face severe punishment if found to have broken China's national security laws, which can carry a sentence of up to life in prison for cases deemed most serious.
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