Detained Australian writer Yang Hengjun says he has no fears for his future ahead of his secret trial

Yang Hengjun has told loved ones he will face suffering and torture with resilience and dignity.

Yang Hengjun says his health is deteriorating after more than two years in detention without fresh air or sunshine.

Detained Australian writer Yang Hengjun has told loved ones he no longer fears for his future, declaring ahead of his secret trial in a Chinese court on Thursday that he will face suffering and torture with resilience and dignity.

In a message to his friends and family, Dr Yang — who faces a potential life sentence for alleged espionage — said he still had “some faint hope” the court would “right the wrongs and do me justice”.

But he said he was prepared to accept whatever lay ahead.

“There is nothing more liberating than having one’s worst fears realised,” Dr Yang said in the message delivered in March before the court date was set.

“I have no fear now. I will never compromise.”

He said his health was continuing to deteriorate after more than two years in detention without fresh air or sunshine.

“But spiritually, I’m still strong. Visits by the embassy and your messages sustain me,” Dr Yang said.

The 56-year-old will be tried in a closed court in Beijing without access to Australian consular officials in a process blasted by Foreign Minister Marise Payne as inconsistent with basic standards of justice.

Dr Yang’s lawyers will also be tightly constrained in their ability to represent their client.

The pro-democracy commentator who was once an officer with China’s Ministry of State Security urged his supporters not to despair for him.

“Thank you for your help, but don’t worry too much. I will face suffering and torture with resilience. I am growing. I will face each day with dignity,” he said.

“The values and beliefs which we shared, and which I shared with my readers, are something bigger than myself.

“Victor Hugo said, ‘Supreme happiness is the conviction of being loved’. So you know, I love you all, and I know that I am loved. Please bring my love to all the people concerned about my situation.

“If the worst comes to the worst, if someone wants to take revenge on me for my writings, please explain to the people inside China what I did, and the significance of my writing to people in China.”

Dr Yang undertook a PhD at UTS and was a visiting scholar at Columbia University in the US at the time of his arrest in January 2019, when he was visiting relatives in southern China.

He said if he was released he would “write articles to improve Australia-China relations”. He also wanted to “help China to understand the world, and the world to understand China”.

Dr Yang said he longed to return to Australia — “a heaven-like place” — and wanted to see China’s green mountains and rivers again. He said he also wanted to visit Hong Kong, and resume research at Columbia University.

Dr Yang, who became an Australian citizen in the early 2000s, has previously protested his innocence, declaring he is not a foreign spy.

He will face Beijing Number 2 Intermediate People’s Court where he will be denied the opportunity to respond in detail to the charges and “evidence” against him — which have not previously been disclosed.

His supporters believe that given his state of health, any jail term beyond five years would be an effective “death sentence”.

Dr Yang has two adult sons in Melbourne, while his wife and their young daughter are being prevented from leaving China.

Senator Payne said last week his treatment by Chinese authorities was “closed and opaque” and lacked procedural fairness.

The Chinese government branded her statement as “deplorable”, saying Dr Yang’s case was being handled “strictly in accordance with law”.

“The Australian side should respect China’s judicial sovereignty and refrain from interfering in any form in Chinese judicial authorities’ lawful handling of the case,” a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said.