Yang Jianli, a Chinese national serving as a research fellow at
Harvard University in the United States, was sentenced on Thursday
to five years in prison and deprived of political rights for one
year after being convicted of espionage and illegal border crossing
by the Beijing No. 2 Intermediate People's Court.
The court found, after viewing the evidence in the case, that
Yang, born in Shandong Province, was directed by a Taiwan spy
organization in 1991 in San Francisco to collect confidential
papers of the Chinese government. He later established his own spy
agency with funds from Taiwan to expand his activities on the
mainland.
The court also found that Yang entered China with a false
passport on April 19, 2002, and conducted illegal activities in
Beijing and Liaoning, Heilongjiang and Yunnan provinces while using
a false identification card until he was arrested.
For national security reasons and in accordance with Chinese
laws, Yang was tried behind closed doors. The verdict of the trial
court was made public upon conclusion of the hearings.
Yang's defense attorney was afforded all rights to present his
case during the trial. He has met with his client 17 times since
Yang was arrested.
(Xinhua News Agency May 13, 2004)