Ten cities call for China to release journalist

Demonstrations were held in 10 cities on four continents on Friday calling for the release of a reporter, Ching Cheong, who has been under arrest in China since April last year. Ching, a correspondent for the Singapore Straits Times, is due to be sentenced later this month after being convicted of buying political, economic and military information and passing secrets to Taiwan. He strenuously denies the charges. Organisers of the Los Angeles demonstration have posted a video appeal by Ching's wife, Mary Lau. It was shown in the other nine cities where protests were held: Bonn, Calgary, Hong Kong, Melbourne, New York, Paris, San Francisco, Seattle and Toronto. (Via asiamedia.ucla.edu)