BEIJING — A Beijing court on Friday gave a seven-year jail term to a former senior editor at a major Chinese newspaper affiliated with the ruling Communist Party who had been accused of leaking information to Japanese diplomats, sources familiar with the matter said.
Dong Yuyu, a former deputy head of the Guangming Daily editorial department, had pleaded not guilty to the charge. He was detained in February 2022 after meeting with a Japanese Embassy official in Beijing and was indicted in March last year for alleged espionage, the sources said.
The Japanese diplomat who met with Dong was detained temporarily while on duty, with China justifying its action on grounds that the official was engaged in activities "inappropriate" for his job.
Dong, known as a liberal commentator, is a longtime friend of former Japanese ambassador to China Hideo Tarumi, and was invited to his residence for a Lunar New Year celebration in early 2021, the Chinese journalist's family said.
His trial was closed to the public. In China, it is customary that allegations concerning national security are not released and the details are not announced in most cases even after rulings are finalised.
A prisoner in jail. (File photo: 123RF)