Growing numbers of international academics are expressing reluctance to travel to China for field research or academic conferences, even if Covid-related border restrictions ease.

In Japan, the spotlight is on the case of Yuan Keqin,?a Chinese national who was a history professor at the Hokkaido University of Education until his official retirement this March.?

In May 2019, Professor Yuan was detained while travelling in China for a family funeral. He was incommunicado for nearly two years until he was indicted by the Chinese government. Last month, his son appealed for his 65-year-old father¡¯s release.??

Naomi Chi, an associate professor of public policy at Hokkaido University, told?Times Higher Education?that six Japan-based scholars had been detained in China since 2013. However, Professor Yuan is the only one who has not been released and he has been held the longest.

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¡°The reasons for their detainment are vague, but mostly concerning national security,¡± she said. ¡°Many scholars who conduct research on China or have relations with Chinese scholars or universities have mentioned that they are afraid of travelling to China even post-Covid.¡±

Shaun O¡¯Dwyer, an Australian national and associate professor at Kyushu University researching modern Confucianism, told?THE?he turned down two invitations to attend conferences in China ¡°out of personal concerns for security¡±.

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¡°I would say that for academics in Japan, the chill definitely began with the arrests of Nobu Iwatani and Yuan Keqin in 2019,¡± he said, referring to another Japan-based professor who was detained but subsequently released.

China File,?a publication of the US-based Asia Society,??that slightly more than half its contributors ¨C mostly sinologists who are academics, writers and diplomats ¨C felt unease about returning to the country.

Of 121 respondents to a questionnaire, 56 per cent said they would ¡°probably not¡±, ¡°definitely not¡± or were ¡°unsure¡± about returning to China, where they had previously worked or conducted research. Many cited the of the ¡°two Canadian Michaels¡±: Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor.

Scott Kennedy, who was a founding director of Indiana University¡¯s China office and is now a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, was a regular visitor to China from 1988 to 2019. He had ¡°absolutely no idea¡± what he would do when the Chinese border reopens.

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¡°The political situation has changed significantly in the past few years,¡± he told?THE.?¡°It¡¯s a huge dilemma for people who genuinely care about China, good scholarship and the people we interact with.¡±

Margaret Lewis, a law professor at Seton Hall University, said she was ¡°extremely doubtful, though still a bit uncertain, whether I would get on a plane for China even if given an unexpected green light to do so¡­I will not jeopardise my ability to be there for my kids.¡±

Thorsten Benner, director of the Global Public Policy Institute in Berlin, saw a change since he travelled to China in 2018. ¡°This was and will remain my last trip to China for the foreseeable future,¡± he said.

joyce.lau@timeshighereducation.com