On the 28th, the Chinese government officially confirmed the detention of a Korean national arrested on charges of violating the New Espionage Act (Amendment to the Anti-Espionage Act). The Chinese authorities are concerned that they may be harmed by the ambiguous application of the law while the Chinese authorities maintain a position of ‘legitimate arrest according to the law’. There were also concerns that this could pour cold water on Korea-China exchanges, which are just beginning to show signs of recovery.
Regarding the arrest of Mr. A, a Korean citizen in his 50s, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said at a regular briefing on this day, “This Korean citizen was arrested by the relevant Chinese authorities on charges of espionage.” Mr. A is the first Korean to be arrested on charges of violating the new Espionage Act, which came into effect in July of last year.
Spokesperson Lin said the related actions were legal. He said, “The relevant department provided consular notification to the Korean Embassy in China and provided the necessary convenience for consular duties at the embassy.” He added, “China is a country governed by the rule of law, and illegal criminal activities were detected in accordance with the law and the lawful rights of the parties involved were protected.” “It was guaranteed,” he said.
According to the Korean Embassy in China, Mr. A, who lived in Hefei, Anhui Province, China, was arrested by investigators from the Ministry of State Security, China’s counterintelligence agency, in December last year. Then, in May, Chinese prosecutors detained Mr. A in a detention center on charges of violating the New Espionage Act. Mr. A, who worked for a long time at Samsung Electronics and then was recruited by China’s Changshin Memory Technology (CXMT, 長鑫存儲), which was established in 2016, is known to be suspected of leaking semiconductor information to Korea. On the other hand, Mr. A claims that he did not have access to key technologies while working at CXMT.
Following the news of Mr. A’s arrest, the Korean community continued to point out that clear confirmation of the facts was necessary. In particular, company expatriates raised doubts about the allegations that Chinese semiconductor information was leaked to Korea. A Korean expatriate in Beijing, who requested anonymity, said, “Professionals who were scouted and employed by Chinese companies in Korea are especially agitated. As the first case of application of the ambiguous provisions of the new Espionage Act has emerged, I am worried that I too may be arrested.” did it
Shin Seon-yeong, head of the Shanghai branch of the Korea International Trade Association, said, “Everyone is in an atmosphere of surprise and is more anxious because a clear reason for the arrest has not been revealed.” He added, “We want to dispel the anxiety of Korean residents who are active in both Korea and China, and promote private economic cooperation and human exchange between the two countries.” “It would be nice to have specific guidelines on how much activity is allowed so that people are not discouraged,” he said.
China’s new Espionage Act, which took effect in July of last year, broadened the definition of espionage and the scope of application of the law, but is being criticized for increasing the scope for Chinese authorities to arbitrarily judge espionage.
There are also concerns that this will pour cold water on people-to-people exchanges between Korea and China, which were showing signs of recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic. Professor Jae-woo Joo of Kyung Hee University said, “It is expected to greatly reduce the visits and activities of Korean residents, tourists, and businesspeople to China. “In particular, given that a person scouted by a Chinese company was arrested, it will have a negative impact on exchanges between businesspeople and engineers,” he predicted.
Regarding the incident, an official at the Korean Embassy in China said, “There is nothing special to add other than that we are providing consular assistance.” It has been reported that the embassy is not making a separate statement as Mr. A is facing trial.
Beijing = Correspondent Shin Kyung-jin shin.kyungjin@joongang.co.kr
