Former spy unravels China's tactics of tracking, abducting dissidents globally

Sydney [Australia], May 13 : A former Chinese spy, who was in Australia, unravelled China's tactics of tracking and abducting dissidents living overseas including India, Thailand, Canada and Australia, reported Voice of America (VOA).

Australia's public broadcaster on Monday, accused China's secret police service of tracking down dissidents living overseas, reported Voice of America (VOA).

The spy - named only as "Eric" said he worked as an undercover agent for a unit within China's federal police and security agency.

Australia's public broadcaster made these accusations in an investigation.

A former Chinese spy now living in Australia told Australian Broadcasting Corp.'s Four Corners program that a unit of the Chinese secret service had been operational in Sydney as recently as last year, VOA reported.

"Eric" further described a shadowy world of deception and abduction.

The former Chinese agent told ABC about how he'd been ordered by the secret police in Beijing to target dissidents overseas, including in India, Thailand, Canada and Australia.

'Eric' said he would gain their confidence and lure them to countries where they could be kidnapped and sent back to China, as reported by VOA.

He further told the journalists that he fled last year to Australia.

However, Australia's domestic spy agency has not yet confirmed any of the details of the alleged Chinese spy ring.

'Eric' said he worked as an undercover agent for a unit within China's federal police and security agency, the Ministry of Public Security, between 2008 and early 2023.

The specialist division is called the Political Security Protection Bureau, or the 1st Bureau, and targets so-called enemies of the Chinese state.

Moreover, it is alleged to have been working in Sydney as recently as last year, VOA reported.

Eric further stressed that he was speaking out to expose the truth.

"I believe the public has a right to know the secret world. I worked for the Chinese Political Security Department for 15 years," he said. "Today, it is still the darkest department of the Chinese government."

Notably, this is the first time anyone from China's secret police has ever spoken publicly, ABC reported.

Peter Mattis, a China analyst at the Jamestown Foundation, a US-based conservative defence policy research organization, said, that Beijing wants to curb dissent among the Chinese diaspora.

"The Political Protection Bureau has also had a role in trying to silence dissidents as well as to map dissident networks," Mattis said.

Moreover, ABC said that it has seen hundreds of secret documents and correspondence, backing up 'Eric's' allegations, reported VOA.

Chinese authorities have used anti-corruption campaigns to return more than 12,000 alleged fugitives to China in the past decade, ABC reported.

However, Chinese authorities have not yet commented on the allegations made in the Australian documentary.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor