Australian journalist Cheng Lei has day in Chinese court but closed-door trial ends with deferred verdict

Canberra’s ambassador barred from entering the courtroom as CGTN anchor faced charges of providing state secrets to foreign country

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said a verdict would be handed down ‘at a scheduled date’, urging Australia to respect judicial sovereignty and not interfere

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Cheng Lei, an Australian journalist working for China’s English-language broadcaster CGTN, has been in detention since August 2020. Photo: AP

Published: 10:47am, 31 Mar 2022Updated: 8:54pm, 31 Mar 2022

China’s closed-door trial of Australian journalist Cheng Lei, who is accused of providing state secrets to a foreign country, ended on Thursday with the court deferring its verdict, Australia’s foreign minister said.

It was not clear when a verdict would be handed down. China’s courts have a conviction rate of well over 99 per cent, according to calculations by China Justice Observer, a local website.

Australian ambassador to China Graham Fletcher talks to journalists outside the Beijing No 2 Intermediate People’s Court, after being denied entry to the trial, where Australian journalist Cheng Lei faced trial. Photo: Reuters

Cheng, 46, was a television anchor for Chinese state broadcaster CGTN before being detained in August 2020. She was formally arrested a year ago.

Cheng’s family members have said they are convinced she is innocent.

A heavy contingent of uniformed police and plain-clothed security personnel were posted outside the No 2 People’s Intermediate Court in Beijing where Cheng was tried. Police, who had taped off areas close to the northern and western entrances of the court, checked journalists’ IDs and asked them to move away.

Australian ambassador to China Graham Fletcher was denied entry to the court.