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In a case that blurs the lines between activism and espionage, a New York resident who once fought for democracy in China now faces charges of covertly working for the Chinese government in the United States.
The Justice Department’s charges, unveiled on Wednesday, have cast a spotlight on the web of allegiances and motivations at play.
67-year-old Tang Yuanjun swam to freedom over two decades ago, escaping to a Taiwan-controlled island before ultimately finding safe haven in the United States, where he was granted political asylum.
Tang Yuanjun faces grave allegations of secretly working on behalf of the People’s Republic of China in the United States, with the Justice Department charging him on Wednesday with acting as an unregistered agent between 2018 and 2023.
Tang completed “tasks at the direction of the PRC’s Ministry of State Security (MSS), which is the PRC’s principal civilian intelligence agency,” the department said.
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According to the charges, Tang Yuanjun fed sensitive information to Chinese intelligence officials about individuals and organizations deemed threatening to the People’s Republic of China’s interests, including prominent Chinese democracy advocates and dissidents living in the United States.
Tang Yuanjun faces additional charges for allegedly deceiving the FBI by claiming he had severed ties with a crucial email account, which was actually still active and used to communicate with his Chinese intelligence handler.
He was arrested on Wednesday and was scheduled to appear before a district judge.
Asked by AFP about the case on Thursday, Beijing’s foreign ministry said it was “not familiar with the specifics you have raised”.
Tang Yuanjun faces further charges for allegedly pulling the wool over the FBI’s eyes, claiming he had severed ties with a crucial email account – a claim that proved false, as he continued to use it to communicate with his MSS handler.
Tang Yuanjun walked free after completing an eight-year prison term.
Undeterred by persecution, Tang Yuanjun persisted in advocating for democracy in China, suffering multiple detentions, interrogations, and harassment before fleeing to Taiwan, where a Taipei-based rights group helped facilitate his asylum claim in 2002.
