Family: Chinese journalist faces espionage charges

BEIJING (AP) — The family of a veteran Chinese journalist says he faces espionage charges after being detained while meeting with a Japanese diplomat in a restaurant. Dong Yuyu, deputy head of the editorial department at Guangming Daily, often wrote liberal-leaning articles and regularly met with foreign journalists and diplomats to help understand global trends. But his family says Chinese authorities regarded his contacts with foreign diplomats as evidence of spying. Espionage can be penalized with a jail term of more than 10 years. Dong is the latest in a series of liberal Chinese voices to be accused by the government of being linked to what it terms foreign interference. The Foreign Ministry said it did not know the specifics of Dong’s case.