A letter written by detained Australian writer Yang Hengjun to be released in the event he was arrested includes an impassioned plea to other civil rights activists to keep fighting for democracy and political reform in China.
The missive, written in 2011, reveals Mr. Yang feared that his writing and blogging would lead to his incarceration in China.
In it, he also cautions his friends and supporters not to risk their own safety by fighting for his release.
Mr. Yang, a writer, democracy advocate and former Chinese diplomat who has lived in Sydney, was detained by security agents when he arrived in China on January 19.
He has now been charged with espionage and is being held in "residential surveillance in a designated location" in Beijing, according to information from his Chinese lawyer, Mo Shaoping.
If I cannot come out or disappear again, remember my articles and let your children read them - Yang Hengjun
In the 2011 letter, Mr. Yang asks his supporters not to "put yourselves at risk over my situation" but also to "maintain belief in China's democratic future, and, when it doesn't put yourself or your family at risk, to use all your means to push China's democratic development to happen sooner".
He implores his supporters to push for "freedom, human rights, the rule of law, and justice to occur sooner" in China.
"If I can come out, I will continue my work. If I cannot come out or disappear again, remember my articles and let your children read them," he wrote.
The letter has been safeguarded by Mr. Yang's close friend, Sydney academic Dr. Feng Chongyi, who provided it to The Age and Sydney Morning Herald after it appeared Mr. Yang would not be released soon.
Mr. Yang details his anguish at his decision in 2011 to "lie" about his previous arrest by Chinese security by stating publicly it was as a result of a "misunderstanding".
He explains that he was in fact kidnapped by Chinese government agents in March 2011 but had publicly played down his ordeal upon his release so he could travel to China and keep pushing for democratic reform.
"If I came out and said 'the truth', the authorities concerned would have been intolerable for a while, however, I can no longer return to China anyway, and can no longer continue to spread the tenants of freedom and democracy - which I was already doing with some scope," he wrote.
"I really believe that in China, spreading the philosophy [of democracy] is a vital task.
"I will definitely continue to use my methods to contribute to China's democracy."
The letter is signed: "Yours, Yang Hengjun."
Mr. Yang managed to avoid arrest for a further seven years, although the fact he wrote a letter to be released in the event he was detained again suggests he knew his liberty was at the whim of the Chinese Communist Party.
The Age and the Herald also understand the Australian government indicated over the weekend it had agreed to approve a family reunion visa being sought by Mr. Yang’s wife and step-daughter.
Mr. Yang’s detention has prompted government and opposition MPs to raise concerns about his treatment and created a dramatic new fissure in the relationship between Canberra and Beijing.
Last week, prominent Liberal MP Andrew Hastie accused Beijing of seeking to coerce the Chinese diaspora and foreign governments by detaining Mr. Yang.
Mr. Hastie - the chair of Parliament's powerful intelligence and security committee - demanded Mr. Yang's release and speculated the arrest could be designed to deter Chinese living overseas from criticizing the Chinese Communist Party, or pressure Australia into adopting a softer approach to dealings with Beijing.
Senior government ministers adopted a more cautious tone, in line with the backroom diplomatic efforts of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to obtain assurances about Mr. Yang’s welfare.
Defence Minister Christopher Pyne told reporters in Singapore on Monday that he did not "see any evidence that the detention of Mr. Yang is linked to decisions that the Australian government has made in recent times".
Echoing the earlier comments of Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne, Mr. Pyne also downplayed the prospect it was linked to the detention of two Canadians and the sentencing of a third to death.
Mr. Pyne said he had spoken to senior Chinese military officials in an effort to ensure Mr. Yang was "being well cared for and being treated fairly and transparently".
He said the Australian consulate had been granted access to Mr. Yang upon request.
Australian diplomats have visited Mr. Yang in detention and a friend of the writer, Sydney academic Feng Chongyi, said last week that he was reportedly in good spirits.
Mr. Yang is a popular and prolific presence online, having published fiction writing and commentary on politics.
He traveled to China despite warning from friends that it was too dangerous.
