The suspension of the Dutch ambassador to China made headlines in the Netherlands on October 17. The 58-year old diplomat Ron Keller was reportedly suspended from his post after reports of a secret relationship between him and a local employee.
The affair became international news when the BBC also reported Keller’s suspension, followed by various Chinese media outlets such as Sina and Tencent, which all published that that Keller – who is unmarried – was under investigation for having an affair with a Chinese woman.
“Less experienced officials were warned by UK government security experts to avoid the lure of “Chinese spies offering sex”.”
The Dutch government warns diplomats not to start romantic relationships with locals due to the dangers of the so-called ‘honeytrap’ – the risk of local agents working as spies. This kind of love affairs makes diplomats more vulnerable to blackmail, with the risk of leaking sensitive information.
In the article “From China with Love“, Irish Times reporter Peter Cluskey writes that the threat of a honeytrap is nothing new and that foreign diplomats arriving in China are routinely advised against relationships with local staff due to the risk of being “compromised” by agents of the Chinese government.
He also reports that during the G20 summit in Hangzhou, less experienced officials were warned by UK government security experts to avoid the lure of “Chinese spies offering sex.”
Although Keller must have been aware of the risk, it did not stop him from starting an intimate relationship with a female member of the local staff, who allegedly visited Keller at his private Beijing residence on numerous occasions.
Today, Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf comes with new details on the Keller affair.
“Sources call Keller a ‘true womanizer’, who was also known to be flirtatious with women during his former work as ambassador.”
According to De Telegraaf journalist Marcel Vink, the Chinese woman on Keller’s staff involved in the scandal is Mandy Xia, a woman from Fuzhou who has been working in the Dutch embassy in Beijing since 7 years.
Xia studied at Beijing’s Dance Academy, and with her expertise in the field of art, dance, music and theater, she became the Cultural Affairs Officer at the Dutch embassy in December 2009.
Ambassador Keller was and Xia worked closely together at times, such as during their visit to Chinese multinational Wanda Productions.
The Telegraaf writes that according to its sources, ambassador Keller and Ms. Xia were not just involved in a romantic relationship but also exchanged compromising photographs.
Sources interviewed by the Dutch newspaper calls Keller a “true womanizer” who was also known to be flirtatious with women during his former work as an ambassador in Ukraine, Russia, and Turkey. He was appointed as the Dutch ambassador to China nine months ago, and his affair with Xia allegedly started not long after his first period in Beijing.
“It is a basic human right for this unmarried man to have a relationship with a Chinese woman.”
While the Keller affair became big news in the Netherlands and beyond, many Chinese social media users do not see what the fuss is about. “This is a single guy, so what!?”, was one of the most recurring comments on Weibo and other Chinese social media sites where the Keller case was discussed by many.
Some netizens think it is ironic that while foreign diplomats in China stress the importance of human rights, they do not have the right to choose their own girlfriends: “It is a basic human right for this unmarried man to have a relationship with a Chinese woman. Why are you talking about human rights to us?”, one netizen comments.
Although many netizens think the woman just was attracted to Keller because of his position (“She wants to be the wife of an ambassador,”) there are also those who are sure that the affair is a honeytrap (měirénjì 美人计), saying: “This woman clearly is a special agent (特工)!”
One article on WeChat compares Keller to the ambassador of Spain, Manuel Maria Valencia Alonso, who also caused controversy in 2015 for his affair with Chinese writer Zhu Zhiping. The woman exposed their affair, that began in 2013 – when the ambassador was married -, by writing a book titled Mr. Ambassador.
Zhu Zhiping alleged that the ambassador abruptly cut off their relationship in 2015, after which she spotted him with another woman. When she confronted him, he slapped her in the face, she said. She later protested at the Spanish Embassy, saying it was a place for the ambassador “to play around with Chinese females.”
But in the case of Keller, many people keep stressing the fact that he is an unmarried man, and that his relationship to Xia is therefore not an illicit love affair: “This is just two people who love each other, what’s the big deal?”, one person comments.
Although there are no indications that the relationship between Xia and Keller involved any kind of ‘honeytrap’, the ambassador has now been suspended and is currently back in the Netherlands.
– By Manya Koetse
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Featured image: Keller, the Dutch embassy (Weibo), Mandy Xia (iFeng News, 2011).
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