Cheng Lei’s partner: ‘Her kids need a hug from their mum’
Cheng Lei’s partner Nick Coyle hasn’t seen the Aussie mum in two years. Here, he gives an emotional first person account of the moment he realised she was gone— and pleads for her safe return.
National
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It has been two years, 730 days or 17,520 hours since much-loved mother of two and celebrated Australian journalist Cheng Lei was taken from her home in Beijing, detained by the Chinese Ministry of State Security for reasons unknown.
Going to her apartment 48 hours later, not knowing anything other than Lei hadn’t been answering her phone, everything looked normal.
She had been stressed, I had been as well, and it had taken a toll on us.
The hangover from my birthday drinks the night before wasn’t helping.
I then realised the computer was missing a hard drive, her laptop nowhere to be seen – her passport missing as well.
Bernie was there, our nine- year-old Siamese bundle of sneezes, and I think he knew all wasn’t right.
It certainly wasn’t.
The only saving grace was that Lei’s two children were in still in Melbourne with their grandma, after someone had the bright idea of sending them to Australia to be able to go to school and avoid Covid lockdowns in China.
These days people ask me two questions; How is Lei going? And, when can she come home? I tell them the truth, just like Lei would want me to.
To the first question I say, it is shit, but she’s tough, resilient, intelligent, deeply funny, a pain in the arse, immensely loveable and will get through this with all of that intact.
I don’t have an answer to the second question.
On her last video call with Australian consular officials, Lei said she had been dreaming of the kids when they were little.
“I miss them so much, but I try to remind myself that as long as they are doing well and growing up strong, then that is the main thing,” she said.
Two years later, the kids still have not been able to hear mum’s voice or get anything close to a warm hug.
We all need those from mum once in a while – and so does mum.
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