Stern Hu (; born 1963 in
Tianjin
Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total popul ...
) is an
Australian
Australian(s) may refer to:
Australia
* Australia, a country
* Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia
** European Australians
** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists
** Aboriginal Au ...
businessman jailed in China after pleading guilty to stealing commercial secrets and receiving bribes. Hu was formerly an executive of
Rio Tinto Rio Tinto, meaning "red river", may refer to:
Businesses
* Rio Tinto (corporation), an Anglo-Australian multinational mining and resources corporation
** Rio Tinto Alcan, based in Canada
** Rio Tinto Borax in America
*** Rio Tinto Borax Mine, a ...
mining group in
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
,
[ having graduated from ]Peking University
Peking University (PKU; ) is a public research university in Beijing, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education.
Peking University was established as the Imperial University of Peking in 1898 when it received its royal charter ...
before obtaining Australian citizenship in 1994.[Matt O'Sullivan (11 July 2009)]
Stern Hu 'thrown to the wolves'
, ''The Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...
'' He was released in July 2018 after serving eight years of a ten year prison sentence.
Conviction in China
On 5 July 2009, Hu and three Chinese colleagues were detained by the Chinese government.[Foreign Minister Media Release-Mr Stern Hu]
, Australian Department of Foreign Affairs
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is the department of the Australian federal government responsible for foreign policy and relations, international aid (using the branding Australian Aid), consular services and trade and inv ...
, 9 July 2009 On 29 March 2010, Hu was sentenced to ten years' jail after pleading guilty to stealing commercial secrets and receiving bribes.[John Garnaut & Sanghee Liu (29 March 2010)]
Stern sentenced to 10 years by Chinese court
, ''The Age
''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...
'', Retrieved 29 March 2010
According to China state media, data found stored on Hu's personal laptop allegedly contained confidential business information of several dozen major business partners of Rio Tinto, including storage levels and sales plans deemed much too specific and precise to have been acquired legitimately.[Zhang Qi & Tong Hao (15 July 2009)]
'Bribery is widespread' in Rio case
, ''China Daily
''China Daily'' () is an English-language daily newspaper owned by the Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party.
Overview
''China Daily'' has the widest print circulation of any English-language newspaper in China. T ...
'' Hu was accused of having obtained such information through bribery and other illegal means for massive corporate and personal benefits.[Chinese'']
Sina News
14 July 2009
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd
Kevin Michael Rudd (born 21 September 1957) is an Australian former politician and diplomat who served as the 26th prime minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010 and again from June 2013 to September 2013, holding office as the leader of the ...
, a former diplomat to China, refused to intervene on a personal level,[Rachel Pannett & Alex Wilson (14 July 2009)]
Australia Presses China Diplomat on Worker Held
''Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
'' and criticised the media and the opposition party for adding political bias to the issue. Australian authorities were granted access to Stern Hu, and Foreign Minister Stephen Smith subsequently declared that he was in good health.[ AAP (11 July 2009)]
Stern Hu in good health
, ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' After the trial, Rio Tinto terminated the employment of Hu and other convicted executives.[AAP, 29 March 2010]
Rio Tinto fires Hu, other jailed execs
Yahoo!7 News According to Rio Tinto's chief executive, the trial would not adversely affect any business connections.[AAP, 29 March 2010]
China bond won't be broken: Rio Tinto
Yahoo!7 News
See also
*Rio Tinto espionage case
The Rio Tinto espionage case began with the arrest on 5 July 2009, of four staff in the Shanghai office of the Rio Tinto, in China, who were subsequently accused of bribery and espionage. Two days later, an import executive of the Shougang Group an ...
*Xue Feng
Xue Feng (; born February 6, 1965), is a Chinese American geologist who worked for IHS Inc. when he was arrested by the Beijing State Security Bureau during a business trip to China. He was subsequently tortured, charged with espionage, and sent ...
References
External links
China iron and steel Association
(video)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hu, Stern
1963 births
2009 in China
Australian businesspeople
Chinese emigrants to Australia
Espionage scandals and incidents
Living people
Businesspeople from Tianjin