Washington DC [US], August 20 (ANI): The United States on Thursday designated US citizen and Myanmar academic Min Zin as “wrongfully detained” by China, following his detention in Yunnan in June while he was travelling to attend an academic conference at the invitation of the Chinese government.
In a statement, US Assistant Secretary of State Dylan Johnson said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had determined that Zin was being wrongfully detained after an extensive review of the circumstances surrounding his June 3 detention.
“Secretary Rubio has determined that U.S. citizen Min Zin is wrongfully detained in China,” Johnson said.
He said Zin had travelled to Yunnan to attend an academic conference when he was detained.
With the designation, Zin becomes the second US citizen currently designated by Washington as wrongfully detained in China. The other is Dr Youlin Chen.
“There are now two wrongfully detained U.S. citizens in China: Mr. Zin and Dr. Youlin Chen. The safety and security of U.S. citizens is the State Department’s top priority. We will continue to advocate for Mr. Zin and call for the release of all U.S. citizens who are arbitrarily detained or exit banned in China,” the statement read.
Chinese authorities announced Zin’s arrest in June. China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian, during a regular press conference, said at the time that Zin was suspected of “engaging in espionage and endangering China’s national security”, without providing further details.
Zin, the founder and executive director of the Institute for Strategy and Policy-Myanmar (ISP-Myanmar), was detained on June 3 while travelling to Kunming, China, according to the organisation.
Following the US designation, ISP-Myanmar welcomed Washington’s decision and called for Zin’s immediate and unconditional release.
In a statement, the think tank said the designation “sends a clear message that Min Zin’s release is a top priority” for the US government.
“As an organisation that keeps intellectual freedom at its core, this designation also reaffirms that independent, open-source researchers and academics should be able to conduct their work without fear of intimidation or arbitrary detention,” ISP-Myanmar said.
The organisation urged the US government to continue treating Zin’s case as a priority, particularly ahead of a planned meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping next month.
It also called on China to facilitate Zin’s “immediate and unconditional release”, saying it hoped he could reunite with his family and colleagues soon.
Earlier, ISP-Myanmar had condemned Zin’s detention and rejected what it described as “groundless allegations” against its executive director.
The organisation said Zin had travelled to China solely to attend an academic workshop and stressed that it was an independent, non-partisan and non-governmental think tank focused on research and analysis of Myanmar’s political and socioeconomic developments.
ISP-Myanmar said it remained committed to conducting independent, open-source research and argued that academic and research organisations should be able to operate without intimidation. (ANI)
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