Australian minister says he don't know why Chinese authorities detained Cheng Lei

Australian trade minister Simon Birmingham asserted that Canberra had no information as to why the Chinese authorities have detained Chinese born Australian journalist Cheng Lei. Lei, a high profile business journalist and anchor for Chinese state television CCTV was arrested two weeks ago. Her detention was confirmed by Canberra on August 31 after officials said that they had a virtual consular visit with Lei at a detention facility.

“Cheng Lei is an Australian, a journalist who has been working in China for some period of time. I’ve actually met her and been interviewed by her while overseas myself,” Birmingham told state radio broadcaster ABC. 

Birmingham also expressed empathy for her family saying that it was for her family that they’d do what they can to assist her, “as we would and have any Australian in these sorts of circumstances”.

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According to a report by ABC, friends became concerned when Lei did not reply to messages in recent weeks, fuelling speculation among her Chinese state media colleagues. She has not been charged but is being held under what is called "residential surveillance at a designated location", a form of detention in which investigators can imprison and question a suspect for up to six months while cutting them off from lawyers and the outside world.

Her family in a statement said they are in touch with the Department of Foreign Affairs and trade and doing everything to support her. Australian embassy was given consular access to cheng via a video link on August 27.

'World’s number 1 jailer of journalists'

Meanwhile, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has questioned the Chinese Communist Party for arresting Lei. In a statement, they have asked Chinese authorities to either disclose the reasons for holding Lei or release her immediately. Dubbing China as the “world’s number one jailer of journalists”, Steven Butler, CPJ’s Asia programme coordinator  said that China must make it clear if her  arrest has anything to do with “her media work”

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