Son of Chinese journalist jailed on espionage charges calls for his release

The son of a Chinese journalist sentenced to seven years in jail on espionage charges has called for his father’s release, urging authorities to overturn a conviction that has raised alarm over Beijing’s increasing crackdown on press freedom.

Dong Yuyu, a former senior editor at the Communist Party-affiliated Guangming Daily, was detained in February 2022 while having lunch with a Japanese diplomat in Beijing.

His son, Dong Yifu, speaking at the National Press Club in Washington on Monday, urged Japanese authorities to support his father’s appeal by proving that his diplomatic meetings had no connection to espionage.

“It is a press freedom issue. It is a human rights issue. It has very little to do with national security or espionage,” he said.

The elder Dong's arrest, just two months before his planned retirement, shocked journalists and diplomats in China, where it is common for reporters to maintain contact with foreign officials as part of their work.

The Beijing No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court sentenced him in November 2023 after prosecutors presented eight meetings with Japanese diplomats as evidence against him, his family says.

Dong Yuyu was known for advocating constitutional democracy, political reform, and government accountability in his articles — topics that were once open for discussion in party-affiliated media but have since fallen out of favour.

He was previously a Nieman fellow at Harvard University and later held academic positions at Keio University and Hokkaido University in Japan before returning to China.

Despite his imprisonment, Dong's son says he remains in good health, maintaining his fitness with daily exercise. However, he is only allowed a few hours of sunlight per year and has not been permitted to see his wife.

His lawyer, who visits monthly, delivers handwritten letters from his wife, and the elder Dong has prepared a 45-page appeal document contesting his conviction.

The conviction has drawn widespread condemnation from press freedom advocates. Reporters Without Borders has labelled China “the world’s largest prison for journalists”, reporting that more than 100 are detained. 

Last Friday, the US State Department called for Dong’s immediate and unconditional release, while former US Ambassador Nicholas Burns previously condemned the verdict as unjust on X.

China’s Foreign Ministry has not yet commented on the case.