One of his former professors in China repeatedly expresses shock that the man has been charged with attempted intelligence activities in Norway. – OMG. It is a very serious accusation, he says to news. The Norwegian accused of spying was arrested and remanded in custody last week. He was associated with a prestigious Chinese university from 2016-2020, news has previously confirmed. Before that, he took a bachelor’s degree in Norway, and is said to have taken a master’s degree in South Africa. The European university professor had close contact with the spy-accused Norwegian while he was studying, and sat on the jury that assessed the spy-accused Norwegian’s doctorate. – He was a very sharp student. He participated in debates, and had a strong interest in theory in international relations, says the professor. news has anonymized him in order not to identify the accused. – I loved having him in my classes. He was interested, well prepared, and showed genuine interest. I got the impression that he wanted to pursue an academic career. – He was one of the best students I had there. PST has previously said that the man will not allow himself to be questioned. He denies criminal guilt. The man’s defender, Marius Dietrichson, does not want to comment on this case. The Norwegian accused of spying during a presentation while studying in China. Photo: private Had a university degree as a supervisor Former study mates of the man accused of spying have, like the European professor, described him as skilled, keen in debates, and provable, to news. One of them believes that the man accused of being a spy was very Western-oriented in his academic texts, and ended up in a disagreement with his tutor during his studies in China because of this. – He was very engaged, and talked a lot with the lecturers. He questioned their thinking and ideology, and had no boundaries, says another former student friend to news. – He was influenced by Western theory for international relations, he says further. news has gained access to the doctorate of the accused, which was submitted in March 2020. It was about the behavior of the Nordic countries towards and because of the geographical proximity to great powers such as Russia. The accused’s supervisor was vice-president at the university the man studied at. He is an apparently highly respected Chinese academic, with several stints at prestigious Western universities on his CV. According to the supervisor’s CV, which is available on the website of a Chinese think tank he is associated with, he has also been part of the permanent committee of the university’s party committee since 2018. The supervisor is thus not placed low in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), not unusual for university leaders. Tightened in 2018 The European professor ended his collaboration with the Chinese university in 2021. By then, he had experienced over time that the academic freedom at Chinese universities had been so severely restricted that he did not find it interesting to work there anymore. In 2018, the university the spy-accused Norwegian studied at changed its “constitution”. In the new “constitution,” the university’s loyalty to the Communist Party of China was emphasized, while principles of freedom of thought were removed, according to NPR. – It got worse and worse, says the European professor. In the same year, the Norwegian’s supervisor was promoted from the position of dean at the faculty of international relations to vice-president at the university. The European professor himself became acquainted with the spy-accused Norwegian’s supervisor many decades ago. Today they have little contact. He says it is difficult to keep in touch with Chinese academics, both because of the pandemic and because of the situation for Chinese academics. – At the universities, most are party members. It is important if you want to have an academic career, he says. Due to the supervisor’s career progress, the professor perceived that the Norwegian accused of spying was dissatisfied with the follow-up. – I read his drafts and commented on them. The supervisor didn’t have time, he says. However, one of the former fellow students believes that the relationship between the accused and the supervisor was friendly. – They were like friends. He was not formal, but could ask the supervisor about the family, for example, he says. Expert: Close relationship between party and academia Hans Jørgen Gåsemyr is a senior researcher at the Norwegian Foreign Policy Institute (NUPI), and researches, among other things, Chinese politics. He says the relationship between the Communist Party (CCP) and academia in China has been close for several decades, but that it has become even closer in recent years. – This applies to the entire Chinese social structure. The Communist Party is involved in all parts of the Chinese social system, including academia, says Gåsemyr to news. He points out that most Chinese academics are members of the CCP or one of the collaborating parties. Hans Jørgen Gåsemyr at Nupi. Photo: NUPI – To get a leading role in society, you must be involved in the Communist Party or one of the cooperation parties. This has been the case for many decades. If it is not career-promoting, it is in any case not career-impeding. In recent years, the party has tightened up, and made it clear that it is the CCP that should have the last word if disagreements or ambiguities arise, says Gåsemyr. – The party’s role was also important 20-30 years ago, but it has been strengthened with the authoritarian tightening China is in, says Gåsemyr. Published 12.07.2024, at 15.57 Updated 13.07.2024, at 12.37 p.m
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The vice-president at the Chinese university was the supervisor of the Norwegian accused of spying – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
