Australia asks for answers on dissident missing in China

Australia is investigating reports a Chinese-Australian dissident is missing in China, officials said yesterday, raising concerns he may be the latest Western citizen to be detained in the country.

Yang Hengjun -- a novelist, former Chinese diplomat and democracy activist -- went missing shortly after he travelled to the southern city of Guangzhou last week, friends said.

When asked about Yang's case, the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said it was "seeking information about an Australian citizen who has been reported missing in China".

"Owing to our privacy obligations we will not provide further comment," a spokesman told AFP.

The Australian government is believed to be in contact with Yang's friends and family, as well as Chinese authorities.

At a regular press briefing in Beijing yesterday, China's ministry of foreign affairs spokeswoman Hua Chunying said she "did not know" about Yang's situation and "needs to get more information from the relevant departments".

Authorities in Guangzhou did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Yang had travelled to China with his wife and son on January 18, but never made a planned internal flight to Shanghai.

His disappearance prompted fears that he may be the latest victim of an increasingly broad dragnet by Chinese security services.

Australia recently expressed concern about China's detention of two Canadians in apparent retaliation for the arrest in Canada of a senior executive of Chinese telecom giant Huawei.