[00:00.00]China recently released an unusual comic strip.

[00:04.71]The comic ¨C which tells a story in words and drawings ¨C

[00:10.47]appears to be about a romantic relationship between a western student and a Chinese woman.

[00:18.94]But the comic is really part of China's new anti-spying campaign.

[00:26.27]In the comic, a western student named David meets a Chinese woman named Xiao-Li.

[00:36.62]David brings Xiao-Li flowers, he buys her dinner,

[00:42.53]and he takes her for walks in the park.

[00:45.87]Then he asks Xiao-Li for secret documents.

[00:51.00]The comic, or cartoon, warns citizens against helping people who might be spies.

[01:01.44]China has also released a phone number citizens can call

[01:06.77]if they are suspicious about foreign spies and Chinese citizens who might be helping them.

[01:14.35]China's anti-spying effort comes at a time

[01:18.60]when two high-profile criminal cases are making headlines.

[01:23.95]Just last week, the Chinese government sentenced to death a computer technician for helping foreign spies.

[01:34.64]The computer technician's name is Huang Yu.

[01:39.47]He was accused of taking $700,000 over the course of almost 10 years

[01:48.38]to pass confidentialinformation to a foreign country.

[01:53.30]His mother and brother-in-law were also punished for helping him.

[01:58.91]Huang appeared on national television with a message:

[02:04.17]turn yourself in if you are spying for a foreign country.

[02:08.92]¡°It¡¯s better for your family and for you,¡± he said.

[02:13.30]The Chinese government prosecuted another man for stealing state secrets.

[02:20.23]He was a Canadian who operated a caf¨¦ near China¡¯s border with North Korea.

[02:27.14]There are several points of view about the anti-spying campaign.

[02:32.52]One view, according to analysts in China,

[02:36.61]is that it makes sense to be worried about citizens passing secret information to foreigners.

[02:44.51]¡°Any responsible government should be concerned,¡± says Shen Dingli,

[02:50.58]an international relations professor at Fudan University.

[02:55.80]But others say the anti-spying campaign makes the average Chinese person more afraid of foreigners.

[03:04.26]They warn it also makes citizens more accepting of government restrictions on press and social media.

[03:13.76]Eva Pils is a legal scholar from Kings College in London.

[03:19.23]She says China¡¯s campaign against spying

[03:24.19]¡°helps the government explain the need for ¡­ [the] repression of civil society.¡±

[03:30.70]I¡¯m Dan Friedell.