News about Japan

[Tom MoodyParticipant]

Fast-Rising Number of Japanese Detained in China is an International Issue

A Japanese man in his fifties who was detained in China in the summer of 2019 on espionage charges was recently sentenced to twelve years in prison by a court in Hunan Province. Furthermore, earlier in 2023, a Japanese executive with Astellas Pharma, a major pharmaceutical company, was detained in Beijing.

In recent years, China’s counterespionage law has been revised. Since then, the number of cases of Japanese nationals detained without an explanation of the reasons has soared.

Increasingly, people are saying. “It’s too scary to go to China.”

Jailed for Mentioning International Politics

According to Japanese and Chinese sources, the man sentenced to prison in Hunan Province was a company employee living in Changsha City, Hunan Province. He worked in the nursing care industry. Therefore, he had almost no connection with political, diplomatic, or military affairs. Judging from the standards of international society, it is extremely likely that he was falsely accused.

Then there is the case of Hideiji Suzuki, a former executive of a Japan-China friendship organization. Suzuki was detained by Chinese authorities in 2016. He was accused of alleged espionage activities and sentenced to six years in prison. After serving that sentence, he returned to Japan in 2022

Suzuki wrote a memoir after returning to Japan. According to his story, one of the direct reasons he was jailed was a simple inquiry. When eating with someone connected to the Chinese government, he inquired about news reported in Japanese media that a top North Korean official had been executed. “Is that so?” he asked casually. The Chinese replied, “I don’t know.” This simple back-and-forth was one of the reasons he was arrested on suspicion of “eliciting State secrets.”

In the first place, whether or not a North Korean high official was executed is hardly a Chinese state secret. In China, however, there have been cases in which a person was found guilty for merely mentioning international politics.

Not Just Japanese at Risk

Not only Japanese but other foreigners as well have been imprisoned for trivial reasons.

At the beginning of October, Cheng Lei, a female Australian journalist of Chinese ancestry, was finally released. She had been detained by the Chinese authorities for three years on suspicion of “leaking State secrets.”

In an interview with Australian media, Cheng explained that she had been arrested for having shared official information with a third party a few minutes before the expiration of an embargo that had been placed on its release to the public.

Early release of embargoed information occasionally occurs in the world of journalism. Even though breaking the rules like that might draw a rebuke, it is not a crime. There is absolutely no doubt that imprisonment for three years was a gross overreaction.

Cheng’s arrest happened to take place during a time when the Australian government was criticizing China for its tight control of information regarding COVID-19. It is generally viewed as a case of political retaliation by Beijing.

Curtailing Free Speech Abroad

On November 3 a Hong Kong court sentenced a female university student to two months in prison. She was accused of inciting national division by posting support for Hong Kong independence on social media sites while studying in Japan.

This conviction of an individual for speech in a foreign country has attracted a great deal of attention. The shocking ruling suggests that in the future if a foreigner publicly supports the independence of Hong Kong or Taiwan while in his or her own country, he or she could be arrested and charged with a ………………………………….

Fast-Rising Number of Japanese Detained in China is an International Issue

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