Mr. Chen

Remember the good old days of the Cold War when the west triumphed in wooing a communist defector over to the side of capitalism? Well, those days are gone.

Chen Yonglin sought political asylum in Australia last month after abandoning his post at the Chinese consulate-general in Sydney on May 26. Chen has expressed his desire to defect (with wife and child) to Australia and provide Australia et al. with details regarding China's espionage network and counter Falun Gong activities in Australia.

When approached, Australian authorities immediately informed the Chinese embassy of Chen's accusations and intentions (so much for the cloak and dagger). China is now eager to return Chen to his homeland where he will experience "no harm or punishment". Chen initially applied for political asylum. This was rejected. He has subsequently applied for a protection visa, which is still being considered.

China and Australia have become quite chummy lately given their current attempt to negotiate a free trade agreement. As a result, Australia isn't too concerned with the skeletons that might be rattling in China's closets, but now one of those skeletons is running around on national TV. Chen has claimed that he has appealed to the U.S. for asylum as well.

Meanwhile, he's in hiding in the Sydney area - popping up only to do press conferences.