A Chinese Australian journalist who was previously jailed in China said Monday that Chinese officials attempted to “block” her at a press conference in Canberra in what appeared to be a bid to prevent critical coverage of Premier Li Qiang’s visit to the Australian capital.
Cheng Lei said Chinese officials attempted to stop her from being filmed while she covered Li’s visit to the Australian parliament on Monday.
“They went to great lengths to block me from the cameras and to flank me,” Cheng told Sky News Australia, where she now works.
“And I’m guessing that’s to prevent me from saying something or doing something that they think would be a bad look,” Cheng said.
Cheng previously worked as an anchor for the Chinese state broadcaster CGTN until she was detained in Beijing in August 2020, sparking widespread condemnation from international press freedom groups. She was later convicted of espionage in a closed-door trial.
After Cheng was released to Australia in October 2023, she revealed that she was jailed for the minor infraction of breaking an embargo by just a few minutes.
Video footage posted on social media shows two people next to Cheng at the event. Australian officials later moved Cheng to a new seat.
Australian media reported that the two individuals were Chinese diplomats, which VOA was unable to immediately verify.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he didn’t witness the incident. He added that reporters should “be allowed to participate fully” inside the Australian parliament.
China’s embassy in Canberra did not immediately reply to VOA’s email requesting comment.
Some information in this report came from Agence France-Presse.
