Australian journalist Cheng Lei returns home after getting released by China

Australian journalist Cheng Lei, who was detained by China for more than three years on national security charges, reached home on Wednesday (Oct 11) after getting released, said Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

48-year-old Cheng worked as a business television anchor for Chinese state television when the officials detained her in August 2020 on charges of allegedly providing state secrets to another country.

Cheng, who was secretly tried in March 2022, reached Melbourne where she reunited with her family and two children, said Albanese, while speaking at a press conference.

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"(The) government has been seeking this for a long period of time and her return will be warmly welcomed not just by her family and friends but by all Australians," he stated. He added that the journalist was released after the completion of legal processes in China.

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Meanwhile, China's State Security Ministry stated that Cheng pleaded guilty to charges of sending state secrets related to her work illegally abroad for a state media outlet. It added that she was deported after she served her prison sentence of two years and 11 months.

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Australian diplomats were not allowed to enter her trial and Cheng never made any public comment on her case.

Repeated concerns were raised by Australia regarding her detention which came as China increased blocks on Australian exports amid an escalating diplomatic dispute between the two countries.

"She is a very strong and resilient person," stated Albanese, who had spoken to Cheng and welcomed the journalist home on behalf of the country.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong also met Chengwhen she arrived at the airport.

In a letter to the Australian government which was publicly released in August, Cheng spoke about how she is missing her children, aged 11 and 14, who have been residing in Melbourne with their grandmother.

"In my cell, the sunlight shines through the window but I can stand in it for only 10 hours a year," she said in a letter, which she called a "love letter to 25 million people". The letter was the journalist's first public statement since her arrest.

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Previously, the Australian prime minister had stated that he would raise the case of Cheng with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Analysts stated that the journalist's release can be seen as a breakthrough in ties between the two countries, however, differences remained.

"This is one of the more concrete signs that Australia is no longer being punished by China for comments and policy measures that Beijing had objected to," stated Ryan Neelam, an analyst at the Lowy Institute think tank, while speaking to Reuters

"So this does seem to suggest there is real progress in moving forward the relationship ... But it doesn't completely change the overall structural difficulties that have been present," he added.

(With inputs from agencies)

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