Ex-diplomat appeals to Howard for asylum

CANBERRA - Former Chinese diplomat Chen Yonglin has appealed directly to Prime Minister John Howard and Foreign Minister Alexander Downer for asylum.

Chen is in hiding after abandoning his job as first secretary at the Chinese consulate-general in Sydney last month, saying he faces persecution if he returns home. He has applied for a protection visa, as advised by immigration officials.

Australian Greens senator Bob Brown, who has arranged legal advice for Chen, said the former diplomat had now written to Howard and Downer appealing for asylum.

Brown, who will next week move in Parliament for an inquiry into the original Foreign Affairs' rejection of asylum for Chen, said there was plenty of evidence to suggest the 37-year-old would be persecuted if he was returned to China.

"According to the US State Department, Beijing uses arbitrary arrest, torture and forced 're-education' for dissenters," Brown said. "Last year China executed more people than all other countries combined."

Chinese ambassador Madame Fu Ying said she could not guarantee he would not be punished, but did not see any grounds for it.

- AAP