Journalist Cheng Lei returned home to Australia on Wednesday after being released from about three years of detention in China, BBC reported. Ms Lei, 48, who worked for the international department of China’s state broadcaster, was reunited with her two children and family in Melbourne.
”Her return brings an end to a very difficult few years for her family. The government has been seeking this for a long period of time and her return will be warmly welcomed not just by her family and friends but by all Australians,” Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said, describing her as a ”strong and resilient person”.
He also shared an update on Twitter, ”I am pleased to confirm that Ms Cheng Lei has arrived safely home in Australia, and has been reunited with her two children and her family. I spoke with her on the phone this afternoon. This is an outcome the Australian government has been seeking for a long time.”
Her release follows the completion of the legal process in China, according to the Australian statement. After she was back home, Ms Cheng posted an emotional message on X, on Wednesday night.
”Tight hugs, teary screams, holding my kids in the spring sunshine. Trees shimmy from the breeze. I can see the entirety of the sky now! Thank you Aussies,” she wrote.
