Yang Jianli, a Chinese national serving as a research fellow at Harvard University in the United States, was sentenced on Thursday to five years in prison and deprived of political rights for one year after being convicted of espionage and illegal border crossing by the Beijing No. 2 Intermediate People's Court.

The court found, after viewing the evidence in the case, that Yang, born in Shandong Province, was directed by a Taiwan spy organization in 1991 in San Francisco to collect confidential papers of the Chinese government. He later established his own spy agency with funds from Taiwan to expand his activities on the mainland.

The court also found that Yang entered China with a false passport on April 19, 2002, and conducted illegal activities in Beijing and Liaoning, Heilongjiang and Yunnan provinces while using a false identification card until he was arrested.

For national security reasons and in accordance with Chinese laws, Yang was tried behind closed doors. The verdict of the trial court was made public upon conclusion of the hearings.

Yang's defense attorney was afforded all rights to present his case during the trial. He has met with his client 17 times since Yang was arrested.

(Xinhua News Agency May 13, 2004)