There's nothing wrong with loving military affairs, but safety awareness is also necessary.
Compiled from: Ministry of State Security
Nowadays, the "military enthusiast" community is growing. Most military enthusiasts love their country and care about national defense, but some individuals have weak security awareness, illegally obtaining national military information for the sake of curiosity, showing off, or gaining online traffic, causing serious harm to national security.
Case review
In recent years, national security authorities, together with relevant departments, have cracked down on a number of illegal cases where military enthusiasts secretly photographed sensitive military equipment. Those involved targeted military airfields, ports, and national defense military units, using professional equipment such as telephoto lenses and drones to continuously conduct covert photography, ultimately facing legal sanctions.
In November 2021, a man surnamed Luo used a drone with remote high-definition camera capabilities to illegally film the Fujian aircraft carrier, which was detected by national security authorities. Luo said: "I knew the Fujian was being built in Shanghai, and I was eager to see its construction progress firsthand, to be the first to witness it, so I could have good talking points in the military enthusiast circle."
After identification by relevant departments, the photos and videos taken by Luo involved two classified military secrets and one secret-level military secret. Ultimately, Luo was sentenced to one year in prison, suspended for one year, for the crime of illegally obtaining state secrets.
[3] Counter-Espionage Law of the People's Republic of China
[6] Article 61
Illegally obtaining or possessing documents, data, materials, or items that are state secrets, as well as illegally producing, selling, possessing, or using specialized espionage equipment, if not constituting a crime, shall be subject to a warning from national security authorities or administrative detention of up to ten days.
"Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China"
Article 282
Whoever illegally obtains state secrets by means of theft, espionage, or bribery shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years, criminal detention, public surveillance, or deprivation of political rights; if the circumstances are serious, they shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years and not more than seven years.
[1] The author's perspective
According to the above legal provisions, first-time or occasional offenders whose filming does not cause serious consequences will face administrative penalties; those who repeatedly refuse to correct, knowingly break the law, or commit serious violations will face criminal penalties. Some "military enthusiasts" may only be satisfying personal preferences, but they are easily exploited by those with ulterior motives. Based on personal curiosity, showing off, or seeking online attention, some enthusiasts illegally obtain national military information, which, once spread on the internet, is exploited by malicious individuals, seriously endangering national military security.
Therefore, if any related illegal activities or suspicious situations are discovered, they should be actively reported. National security concerns everyone, and we hope that each of us can become a shield for the nation, shoulder the responsibility of protecting national security, and together safeguard our happy lives.
