Archival Rescue 65 ~ Hao defection

Hao goes public, backs Chen;

Fresh from the Secret Force, a spy downloads on China
By Gary Hughes and Tom Allard
June 9, 2005 Sydney Morning Herald

Amid secret passwords, mysterious faxes and last-minute arrangements to protect him from the alleged Chinese spy network he once worked for, the asylum seeker Hao Fengjun emerged from hiding to talk of the Secret Force.

This force, the 32-year-old Chinese police intelligence analyst says, runs spies in Australia and other Western countries.

Addressing media in Melbourne yesterday, Mr Hao - the second Chinese security official to defect in less than a week - said there were three levels of agents working for the Secret Force: the professional spies, who graduated from police college and were paid to travel overseas to collect intelligence "in all areas"; "working relationship" agents, who acted as businessmen and targeted foreign business groups; and "friends", who infiltrated foreign countries and became friendly with both Chinese and Westerners.

While the Secret Force's main job was to gather political and military information, it also closely monitored Falun Gong and other religious or Chinese democracy groups. Mr Hao knows all this because he worked for the "610 Office" in the National Security Bureau in the northern Chinese city of Tianjin. His job, he said, was to collate and analyse intelligence reports sent back from Australia, the US, Canada and New Zealand about Falun Gong and other groups.

He claims to have downloaded some of these documents from his police computer into his MP3 player and given a sample of them to Australian immigration officials as proof of his claims.

Mr Hao, who has a bridging visa, said his dealings with the Immigration Department had so far been only brief, and he had yet to be interviewed by ASIO.

He and his fiancee applied for asylum after they arrived in Australia on February 15 as part of a tourist group. They have since remained hidden with the help of the Falun Gong in Melbourne.

Although he said he was using his real name, Mr Hao sat with his back to the cameras yesterday for fear of being recognised within the local Chinese community.

He said he faced execution if he was forced back to China. "I am nothing to them. The only thing waiting for me is death."

Although his claims are virtually impossible to verify, Mr Hao did show the cameras his National Security Bureau police pass, which had his photo and

the word "police" in English surrounded by Chinese characters.

Mr Hao said he decided to flee China after being detained for 20 days for making a critical comment about his government's treatment of Falun Gong, including the torture of its leaders. He said he feared for his seven-year-old son from a former marriage.

He decided to go public after Chen Yonglin went to the media at the weekend with claims that 1000 Chinese agents are working in Australia. Mr Chen, who worked at the Chinese consulate in Sydney, is also seeking asylum.

Mr Hao said he did not feel safe in Australia because of the Secret Force's presence. He did know how many of the force's spies were in country, but he supported Mr Chen's claims.

Mr Chen's case is gathering support, with Labor yesterday joining the Greens' call to give him asylum. "There is a strong prima facie case that Chen Yonglin should now be granted an appropriate protection visa, " Labor's foreign affairs spokesman, Kevin Rudd, said.

The Greens made public a copy of the letter Mr Chen sent to the Immigration Department asking the Government for asylum. The May 25 letter appears to contradict claims by the Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, that Mr Chen did not make a formal request.

Mr Downer said yesterday Mr Chen had applied for asylum but that he personally did not receive a formal application.

One of the victims of the spying, Mr Hao said, was Sydney Falun Gong follower Li Ying. Ms Li, whom Mr Hao used as an example, said yesterday she was aware China was spying on her because of her beliefs.

For Mr Hao's appearance yesterday, journalists were sent faxes at the last minute giving the address of the press conference and a password - "serene booking" - to gain entry. The fax was used because the Falun Gong organisers were afraid their telephones would be tapped.

At the end of the press conference, Mr Hao said he wanted to make an announcement. He had joined the Chinese Communist Party in 1991, but as of yesterday he was no longer a member. He was finished with communism.

"I will never go back to China because I know what waits for me," he said.