A Chinese journalist linked to an anonymous letter calling for President Xi Jinping’s resignation has gone missing while on his way to Hong Kong, according to his lawyer and family.
A Chinese journalist linked to an anonymous letter calling for President Xi Jinping’s resignation has gone missing while on his way to Hong Kong, according to his lawyer and family.
Nobody has been able to contact Beijing-based columnist Jia Jia, 30, since Tuesday night when he was set to board his flight from the airport here, his lawyer Yan Xin was quoted as saying by the BBC.
Mr Jia’s wife has also reported him missing. The journalist is said to have warned an editor friend over publishing an anonymous letter calling for Mr Xi’s resignation.
The letter appeared on a state-linked site but was swiftly taken down, said the BBC which also carried the letter on its website.
It is unclear who wrote the letter, which had the byline “loyal Communist Party supporters”. Mr Jia had insisted he had no connection to the letter.
Hong Kong-based tabloid newspaper Apple Daily quoted Mr Jia’s wife as saying that she last spoke to him at 8 pm local time on Tuesday, and he told her he was about to board the plane to Hong Kong.
Mr Jia, who writes for the news portal Tencent, was due to arrive at a friend’s home, but never reached, his wife said.
