My Take | Loss of top science talent by the United States is a gain for China
- Thanks to paranoia and persecution, the mainland and Hong Kong can roll out the red carpet for world-renowned scientists like Charles Lieber
The world of science was shocked when US authorities went after one of the greatest research chemists alive – Charles Lieber. Renowned as a leader in nanotechnology and its applications to biology and medicine, he was for a long time one of Harvard’s brightest scientific lights.
He was targeted under the now-defunct China Initiative, which went after science and tech researchers in the US with potentially compromising links to China, but particularly those of Chinese heritage. In the end, it was clear to everyone that the programme was nothing but a witch hunt. Now, at the end of his ordeal, Professor Lieber has told this newspaper that he is thinking of starting a new research career far away from the US.
His arrest in 2020 made headlines around the world. His crimes? Failure to disclose links to research institutions in China, and not paying his taxes for undisclosed payments from China.
Such lack of disclosure was, for a long time, routine among academics until the Donald Trump-era China Initiative. When FBI and Justice Department goons couldn’t find anything compromising on their targets, they resorted to such disclosure oversight to catch dozens of ethnic Chinese scientists with criminal prosecution. Lieber happened to be white but also very famous.
As for the tax evasion, if you read the financial press, every few months, some multimillionaire or billionaire is reportedly caught not paying taxes. Those cases are almost always punished with a fine; jail is rare.
But like other prominent names caught in the legal web, US authorities decided to make an example of Lieber. He fought his case but was ultimately convicted and sentenced. Freed from jail on time served, he is now finishing his home detention and supervision.