Australian journalist Cheng Lei faces longer stay in Beijing jail as verdict is delayed

Australian journalist and TV anchor Cheng Lei will have to wait longer to learn her fate after her trial was delayed for the second time this year.

Australian Chinese journalist Cheng Lei faces more delays before learning her fate.

Australian journalist and former TV anchor Cheng Lei, who has been detained in China for nearly two years after allegedly providing state secrets to foreign organisations, is facing an agonising wait to learn her fate after the final stage of her trial was delayed for the second time this year.

The mother-of-two, who has been held in a Beijing jail since August 2020, had her case heardin a secretive closed-court trial in China in March. The handing down of her verdict was initially postponed until July, and now it has been delayed a second time.

It’s understood that Chinese authorities last week decided that the verdict in the Cheng Lei case wouldn’t be announced before late October at the earliest, meaning the 47-year-old journalist will remain incarcerated in a Beijing prison at least until then.

Cheng was an anchor for the Chinese government’s English TV channel, CGTN, when she was detained by the Chinese Ministry of State Security and accused of leaking state secrets overseas.

Details of the leaks have not been publicly disclosed.

Australian consular officials in Beijing this month visited Cheng in prison, where she is sharing a cell with three other detainees. She has been unable to see any members of her family since she was arrested, including her two children, aged 11 and 13, who live in Melbourne with her mother.

A Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokeswoman told The Australian the federal government “holds serious concerns about the welfare of Australian citizen Cheng Lei”.

“We expect all Australians detained in China to be treated with due process, procedural fairness and humane treatment, in line with international norms,” the spokeswoman said.

“We continue to provide consular assistance in line with our bilateral consular agreement with China.”

DFAT would not comment on the latest delay to the trial.

Cheng Lei with her partner Nick Coyle.

Cheng was born in China and moved to Australia to complete primary and secondary school and university studies.

She had been working as a journalist in Asia for about 20 years, including at CNBC in Singapore, before she moved to CGTN in Beijing.

The journalist’s long-term partner, Nick Coyle, who was head of the China-Australia Chamber of Commerce before stepping down from the role this month, remains optimistic Cheng will soon be reunited with her two children in Melbourne.

Mr Coyle is not the father of her two children.

“The ultimate goal is to get her home to her family and loved ones as quickly as possible,” he said.

“She’s resilient and coping as well as anyone could in the circumstances that she’s in.

“She’s mentally and emotionally very strong and I think the fact so many people care about her plight and situation gives her a lot of strength.”

It is understood Foreign Minister Penny Wong discussed Cheng’s case during a recent meeting with her Chinese counterpart.

The Labor minister also tweeted a message of support to Cheng on June 25, which said: “Our thoughts are with Cheng Lei – especially today on her birthday. Our hearts go out to her children, whose birthday messages will be passed on during a consular visit to her next Wednesday.”

Cheng was a business reporter for CGTN and her detention came during the breakdown of relations between Australia and China.

Mr Coyle was due to meet with Cheng for his birthday drinks in Beijing in August 2020, but when she failed to turn up he became concerned.

It wasn’t until the next day when he went to her apartment and discovered certain pieces of electronic equipment and personal documentation including passports and birth certificates were missing that he knew something serious had occurred.

Mr Coyle said his only contact with his partner was via consular officials but he remained confident there would be an outcome to her case soon.

“It’s obviously extremely difficult that we are almost two years now without her children being able to talk to her or see her in these formative years,” Mr Coyle told The Australian.

“She was very well known in business circles through her role with CGTN and prior to the CNBC she was an alumni ambassador for DFAT.

“She was somebody who is cared about by a lot of people and is well known.”

He said Cheng remained in a “highly restrictive environment” but was coping with the conditions as best as possible, including doing yoga and other forms of exercise.

Mr Coyle, who is now based in Australia, said he still found the whole episode difficult to fathom.

“It’s deeply shocking, it’s mystifying and it’s been difficult but I’ve always been cognisant that it’s been more difficult on Lei than anyone else,” the 42-year-old said.

“I hope the matter can be dealt with expeditiously and compassionately with an understanding that whatever decision is made impacts Lei and impacts her two children.”