Australia's foreign minister on Monday said the treatment of a writer detained in China was "unacceptable", after reports emerged of torture and daily interrogation.

In an unusually frank statement, Marise Payne said she was "very concerned by reports from a recent consular visit to Australian citizen Dr Yang Hengjun".

Yang has been detained in China since January and was recently charged with spying, which could bring a lengthy prison sentence.

Payne said Yang is subject to "increased isolation from the outside world, with restrictions on his communications with family and friends, and the resumption of daily interrogation, including while shackled".

"This is unacceptable," she said, adding that repeated requests had been made for Yang to get "basic standards of justice, procedural fairness and humane treatment".

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has denied that Yang -- one of a string of foreign nationals recently arrested in China -- was a spy.

The arrests have been described by rights groups as politically motivated.

China's near-silence about Yang's fate has been a point of friction in relations with Australia.

Yang had initially been held in "residential surveillance at a designated location" before being moved to criminal detention in August.

Related Links
China News from SinoDaily.com

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

China fans desert K-pop star for 'liking' Hong Kong tweet
Beijing (AFP) Nov 26, 2019
A South Korean pop star has become the latest celebrity to spark anger on the Chinese internet after he "liked" a tweet about the divisive issue of pro-democracy unrest in Hong Kong. Choi Siwon, a member of popular K-pop boy band Super Junior, was forced to apologise twice after liking a post on Twitter by South Korean newspaper The Chosun Ilbo about the Hong Kong protests. Twitter is blocked in China, but opinions that rile Beijing regularly make their way across the "Great Firewall" of censors ... read more