-
China says defector to Australia is 'unemployed' fugitive

China sought late Saturday to discredit a man identified as a Chinese spy who defected to Australia with a trove of intelligence on Beijing's political interference operations in Hong Kong and overseas, accusing him of being an unemployed fraudster and fugitive.
The Shanghai police statement came hours after a bombshell Australian media report recounting how Wang Liqiang had given Canberra's counter-espionage agency the identities of China's senior military intelligence officers in Hong Kong.
He also provided details of how they funded and conducted operations in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Australia, according to the report, published in Australia's Nine network newspapers, The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald.
Wang said he was personally involved in infiltration and disruption operations in all three territories. His allegations come as Hong Kong is rocked by months-long pro-democracy protests.
He has also "revealed in granular detail" how Beijing covertly controls listed companies to fund intelligence operations, including the surveillance and profiling of dissidents and the co-opting of media organizations, the report stated.
Wang is currently living in Sydney with his wife and infant son on a tourist visa and has requested political asylum, it said.
But in the first comments by Chinese authorities, Shanghai police painted a different picture of the 26-year-old man.
Police said an investigation was launched in April after Wang was allegedly involved in automobile import fraud in February totaling 4.6 million yuan ($653,000).
He had been given a suspended 15-month prison sentence in 2016 in a separate fraud case, police said.
"According to the verification of the public security organ, Wang Liqiang, the so-called 'Chinese agent' reported by foreign media... is unemployed and is a fugitive," the police statement said.
His Chinese passport and Hong Kong resident document were "forged", police said, adding that authorities were "further investigating the case."
Wang said in an interview to be aired Sunday night on Nine's TV news program 60 Minutes that he would be executed if he returned to China.
"Once I go back, I will be dead," a youthful and bespectacled Wang said through a translator in a clip from 60 Minutes shown on Saturday.
According to the news organization, Wang gave a sworn statement to the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) in October saying: "I have personally been involved and participated in a series of espionage activities".
This allegedly included infiltrating Taiwan under an assumed identity and with a South Korean passport to run local operatives in efforts to meddle in the 2018 municipal elections and presidential polls due next year.
He said the operation used local media executives to influence the election campaigns and defeat candidates seen as hostile to Beijing.
He also claimed to have coordinated a "cyber army" to shift political opinion, similar to Russia's interference in the 2016 US presidential election.
"Our work on Taiwan was the most important work of ours -- the infiltration into media, temples and grassroots organizations," he was quoted as saying.
It was his fear of being discovered by Taiwan's counter-espionage authorities working to influence next year's elections that reportedly led Wang to seek asylum in Australia.
In Hong Kong, Wang said he was part of an intelligence operation hidden within a listed company that infiltrated the city's universities and media to counter the pro-democracy movement.
He said his role in the clandestine organization including infiltrating all Hong Kong universities and directing bashings and cyber attacks against dissidents.
His recruits found information on pro-independence activists "and made public all their data, their parents' and family members'," he was quoted as saying.
The goal was "to make all troublemakers in Hong Kong terrified", he said.
Wang also said he helped organize the October 2015 kidnapping of Lee Bo, owner of the Causeway Bay Bookshop, which Beijing said distributed dissident materials.
Four other bookshop employees were also spirited away to the mainland that year.
Other operatives planted in Hong Kong, he said, included a senior manager at a major Asian television network who was actually "a current military cadre with a Division Commander rank".
Wang also reportedly said he had met a high-ranking intelligence operative he believed was conducting spy operations in Australia via a front company in the energy sector.
"I know his position is very important," he was quoted as saying.
The report did not provide additional details on operations in Australia but is likely to exacerbate already high alarm over Chinese espionage and influence operations.
ASIO warned earlier this year that the threat of foreign interference was "unprecedented" and that the number of foreign spies in Australia was higher than during the Cold War.
The agency has never publicly named China in its warnings.
But the former head of the agency, Duncan Lewis, who retired in September, said in an interview published Friday that China wanted to "take over" Australia's political system with an "insidious" and systematic campaign of espionage and influence-peddling.
source: AFP
You May Also Like
Popular Posts
Caricature
BENEFIT AGM approves 10%...
- March 27, 2025
BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the company’s headquarters in the Seef District.
During the meeting, shareholders approved all items listed on the agenda, including the ratification of the minutes of the previous AGM held on 26 March 2024. The session reviewed and approved the Board’s Annual Report on the company’s activities and financial performance for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2024, and the shareholders expressed their satisfaction with the company’s operational and financial results during the reporting period.
The meeting also reviewed the Independent External Auditor’s Report on the company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. Subsequently, the shareholders approved the audited financial statements for the fiscal year. Based on the Board’s recommendation, the shareholders approved the distribution of a cash dividend equivalent to 10% of the paid-up share capital.
Furthermore, the shareholders endorsed the allocation of a total amount of BD 172,500 as remuneration to the members of the Board for the year ended 31 December 2024, subject to prior clearance by related authorities.
The extension of the current composition of the Board was approved, which includes ten members and one CBB observer, for a further six-month term, expiring in September 2025, pending no objection from the CBB.
The meeting reviewed and approved the Corporate Governance Report for 2024, which affirmed the company’s full compliance with the corporate governance directives issued by the CBB and other applicable regulatory frameworks. The AGM absolved the Board Members of liability for any of their actions during the year ending on 31st December 2024, in accordance with the Commercial Companies Law.
In alignment with regulatory requirements, the session approved the reappointment of Ernst & Young (EY) as the company’s External Auditors for the fiscal year 2025, covering both the parent company and its subsidiaries—Sinnad and Bahrain FinTech Bay. The Board was authorised to determine the external auditors’ professional fees, subject to approval from the CBB, and the meeting concluded with a discussion of any additional issues as per Article (207) of the Commercial Companies Law.
Speaking on the company’s performance, Mr. Mohamed Al Bastaki, Chairman BENEFIT , stated: “In terms of the financial results for 2024, I am pleased to say that the year gone by has also been proved to be a success in delivering tangible results. Growth rate for 2024 was 19 per cent. Revenue for the year was BD 17 M (US$ 45.3 Million) and net profit was 2 Million ($ 5.3 Million).
Mr. Al Bastaki also announced that the Board had formally adopted a new three-year strategic roadmap to commence in 2025. The strategy encompasses a phased international expansion, optimisation of internal operations, enhanced revenue diversification, long-term sustainability initiatives, and the advancement of innovation and digital transformation initiatives across all service lines.
“I extend my sincere appreciation to the CBB for its continued support of BENEFIT and its pivotal role in fostering a stable and progressive regulatory environment for the Kingdom’s banking and financial sector—an environment that has significantly reinforced Bahrain’s standing as a leading financial hub in the region,” said Mr. Al Bastaki. “I would also like to thank our partner banks and valued customers for their trust, and our shareholders for their ongoing encouragement. The achievements of 2024 set a strong precedent, and I am confident they will serve as a foundation for yet another successful and impactful year ahead.”
Chief Executive of BENEFIT; Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi commented, “The year 2024 represented another pivotal chapter in BENEFIT ’s evolution. We achieved substantial progress in advancing our digital strategy across multiple sectors, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to the development of Bahrain’s financial services and payments landscape. Throughout the year, we remained firmly aligned with our objective of delivering measurable value to our shareholders, strategic partners, and customers. At the same time, we continued to play an active role in enabling Bahrain’s digital economy by introducing innovative solutions and service enhancements that directly address market needs and future opportunities.”
Mr. AlJanahi affirmed that BENEFIT has successfully developed a robust and well-integrated payment network that connects individuals and businesses across Bahrain, accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies in the banking and financial services sector and reinforcing Bahrain’s position as a growing fintech hub, and added, “Our achievements of the past year reflect a long-term vision to establish a resilient electronic payment infrastructure that supports the Kingdom’s digital economy. Key developments in 2024 included the implementation of central authentication for open banking via BENEFIT Pay”
Mr. AlJanahi concluded by thanking the Board for its strategic direction, the company’s staff for their continued dedication, and the Central Bank of Bahrain, member banks, and shareholders for their valuable partnership and confidence in the company’s long-term vision.
opinion
Report
ads
Newsletter
Subscribe to our mailing list to get the new updates!