Cheng Lei
Australian journalist Cheng Lei to be tried in Beijing
Beijing: An Australian TV journalist, who was detained in China 19 months ago, will be put on trial in the upcoming days, the Australian government confirmed on Wednesday.
According to media reports, the trial is likely to take place in a closed court.
Cheng Lei, a former high-profile anchor for the Chinese government's English-language broadcaster CGTN, is facing accusations of providing state secrets or intelligence to foreigners or foreign organisations, reports ABC News.
Two people close to the case have confirmed to the ABC that Ms Cheng is due to be tried next Thursday in the Beijing No.2 People's Intermediate Court at 9am local time.
Reacting to the development, Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne said in a statement: "The Australian Government has regularly raised serious concerns about Ms Cheng’s welfare and conditions of detention. Our officials have visited her regularly, most recently on 21 March."
"We expect basic standards of justice, procedural fairness and humane treatment to be met, in accordance with international norms," she said.
"We have also asked that Australian officials be permitted to attend Ms Cheng’s hearing on 31 March, in line with China’s obligations under the Australia-China bilateral consular agreement," she said.
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