Australia appalled at China’s suspended death sentence for writer Yang Hengjun

SYDNEY (AP) — Australia says it is appalled at China’s suspended death sentence for Chinese Australian writer and democracy blogger Yang Hengjun. Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said in a statement Monday that it was “harrowing news for Dr Yang, his family and all who have supported him.” Yang has been detained in China since Jan. 19, 2019, when he arrived in Guangzhou from New York with his wife and teenage stepdaughter. Yang received a closed-door trial on an espionage charge in Beijing in May 2021.