China Human Rights Briefing December 1-7, 2010
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December 1-7, 2010
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Highlights
- As Petitioners Mark Legal Publicity Day with Mass Gathering, Thousands Seized: The government-organized “Legal Publicity Day,” held annually on December 4 since 2001, has taken on special meaning for Beijing’s petitioner community, who in recent years have used the occasion to gather outside of the CCTV offices in hopes of drawing attention to their grievances. This past week, thousands of petitioners were rounded up outside of the offices by police and taken to a central black jail for processing and return to their home provinces; one eyewitness estimated the number of detainees at “close to ten thousand.”
- As Nobel Ceremony Nears, Police Ratchet up Pressure on Activists : The crackdown on China’s activist community, launched after the announcement that Liu Xiaobo would be receiving this year’s Peace Prize, is showing signs of intensifying as the award ceremony nears. This past week, CHRD learned that artist and activist Ai Weiwei (艾未未) was stopped at the Beijing airport and prevented from travelling to South Korea, while retired Shandong University professor Sun Wenguang (孙文广) was notified that his application for a passport, which he hoped to acquire in order to travel to Oslo, was denied. In Guizhou, police began rounding up members of the Guizhou Human Rights Forum and taking them into custody in preparation for the award ceremony, and as this edition of CHRB is being sent out, CHRD is receiving reports indicating that police across the country are similarly preparing to detain or disappear prominent members of civil society who are already living under surveillance and restriction on movements.
Contents
Arbitrary Detention
- Beijing Activist Wang Zhongxia Taken into Custody after Search for Liu Di, Two Others Missing
- Lawyers Slapped on the Face during Trial of Shaanxi Village Director
- Police in Beijing Round up Thousands of Petitioners during Legal Publicity Day Demonstrations
- Four Villagers, Including Two Relatives, Detained as Trial Approaches for Shaanxi Village Head
- Guizhou Activists Taken Away as Local Police Prepare for Nobel Ceremony, Human Rights Day
- As Mongolian Activist Hada Nears End of Prison Sentence, Police Detain Wife, Question Son
- Villager Representative Freed after More than Three Years in Prison for Reporting on Land Grab
- Trial Upcoming for Guangxi Village Leaders Detained over Efforts to Reclaim Farmland
- Hunan Teachers’ Representative Sent to RTL for Organizing Petitions
Updates on Post-Nobel Harassment of Activists
- Ai Weiwei Barred from Travelling to South Korea
- Shandong Professor Sun Wenguang, Invited by Liu Xia to the Ceremony, is Refused Passport
Freedom of Assembly
- China Democracy Party Organizers Summoned for Applying to Demonstrate
Forced Eviction and Demolition
- Jiangsu Woman Hospitalized Following Fight over Ongoing Evictions in Nantong City
Harassment of Activists
- Suizhou City Activist Liu Feiyue Interrogated, Beaten for Travelling to Visit Qin Yongmin
- Anhui Activist Seized, Questioned after Photographing Forced Eviction
- Tianjin Activist Placed under Soft Detention to Prevent Legal Publicity Day Protest
- Police Harass Recently-Released Democracy Activist Qin Yongmin
Arbitrary Detention
Beijing Activist Wang Zhongxia Taken into Custody after Search for Liu Di, Two Others Missing
Beijing activist and writer Liu Di (刘荻) has been under soft detention at her home since October 8. On December 6, she went missing; family members believe she was taken away by police. On the evening of December 7, a group of Beijing activists including Wang Zhongxia (王仲夏), Liu Shasha (刘沙沙), Zhou Li (周莉), and Du Guanyu (杜冠宇) went to Liu Di’s apartment complex to search for her. No one answered the doorbell at her building, but when they shouted up towards Liu Di’s apartment, a woman who identified herself as Liu’s aunt responded that Liu wasn’t home, and she didn’t know where she was. As the group left the building, two police officers followed Wang Zhongxia, eventually blocking his taxi and taking him to Hujialou police station. Du and Liu Shasha have also reportedly gone missing and their whereabouts are currently unknown. (CHRD)[i]
Lawyers Slapped on the Face during Trial of Shaanxi Village Director
During the trial of Shaanxi village director Gao Qiang (高强) on December 7, one of his lawyers Dong Qianyong (董前勇) was slapped on the face by an officer in Xi’an City’s Chang’an District Court. At the trial, which started in the morning, Dong’s lawyers protested that the two defendants were in leg irons, but the judge refused to have them removed. The trial was scheduled to be resumed at 2pm after a lunch break, but the judge was ten minutes late. The lawyers asked to be let into the court first, and when they entered and requested that the lights be turned up, Dong was slapped in the face by one of the court officers, sending his glasses flying. The lawyers and the villagers then sent the perpetrator to the local police station, but so far no action has been taken against him. The trial was not resumed in the afternoon as a result of the disturbance. Gao and a fellow villager Wang Wuqin (王武琴) were on trial for “creating a disturbance” after organizing villagers to seek compensation for village land occupied by a brick kiln constructed by the village Party Secretary. (CHRD)[ii]
Police in Beijing Round up Thousands of Petitioners during Legal Publicity Day Demonstrations
On December 4, Legal Publicity Day, petitioners gathered throughout the day outside of the CCTV offices in Beijing, hoping to use the occasion to draw attention to their grievances. Thousands of petitioners were rounded up by police and put onto waiting buses, which drove them to Jiujingzhuang, a central black jail, for processing and handing over to interceptors from their home provinces. One eyewitness estimated there were “close to ten thousand” being processed in Jiujingzhuang by the afternoon.
Legal scholar Xu Zhiyong (许志永) called Legal Publicity Day the most important annual event for petitioners, who have adopted the holiday for their own purpose of seeking redress for the injustices they have faced. Xu estimated that during last year’s event, three to four thousand petitioners were similarly rounded up and processed in Majialou, another central black jail. (CHRD)[iii]
Four Villagers, Including Two Relatives, Detained as Trial Approaches for Shaanxi Village Head
Four residents of Ganzhai Village, in Xi’an City, Shaanxi Province, were detained on December 6, the eve of village director Gao Qiang’s (高强) trial for “creating a disturbance.” Gao Shengli (高生力), Gao Puqiang (高普强), Liu Fei (刘飞), and Wang Jianmin (王建民) were all detained on suspicion of “intentional destruction of property and intentional injury;” Gao Shengli is Gao Qiang’s uncle, and Gao Puqiang is Gao Qiang’s older brother. Reportedly, the officers who seized these four did not present any legal documentation which might have authorized their actions, nor did they properly identify themselves. Gao Qiang was arrested in March of this year after organizing villagers to seek compensation for village land occupied by a brick kiln constructed by the village Party Secretary, and will be tried on December 7 in Xi’an City’s Chang’an District Court. (CHRD)[iv]
Guizhou Activists Taken Away as Local Police Prepare for Nobel Ceremony, Human Rights Day
On the evening of December 6, Guizhou Human Rights Forum members Chen Xi (陈西) and Liao Shuangyuan (廖双元) were seized by police in Guiyang City, Guizhou Province, and taken into detention. Their current whereabouts are unknown. Other members of the Guizhou Human Rights Forum, including Huang Yanming (黄燕明), Wu Yuqin (吴玉琴), and Li Renke (李任科), were also believed to be facing possible detention. Chen and Liao’s disappearance is thought to be related to December 10, the date of the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony as well as International Human Rights Day, which the Guizhou Human Rights Forum marks annually by holding activities in Guiyang City. (CHRD)[v]
As Mongolian Activist Hada Nears End of Prison Sentence, Police Detain Wife, Question Son
On December 10, Inner Mongolia scholar and activist Hada (哈达) will reach the end of his 15-year prison sentence for “separatism” and “espionage.” The days leading up to his release, however, have been marked by increased police pressure on his family members. On December 3, the bookstore run by his wife Xinna (新娜) was suddenly closed by police, who conducted a 13-hour search of the premises. Xinna was then taken into custody by the police, and is currently being held at the Inner Mongolia Number One Detention Center. The next day, Hada’s son Uiles (威勒斯) was interrogated by police, after which he released a public letter detailing his experience and other instances of police harassment he has faced over the past fifteen years. (CHRD)[vi]
Villager Representative Freed after More than Three Years in Prison for Reporting on Land Grab
On the morning of December 6, Fuzhou City, Fujian Province activist Lin Yingqiang (林应强) was released from Fuqing City Prison after serving three years and one month of a four-year sentence for “extortion.” Pointing to a scar on his forehead that is yet to be healed, Lin said he was beaten by prison guards about two weeks before his release for “failure to follow orders.”Lin, a land rights advocate and representative of villagers whose swaths of farmland were repeatedly expropriated without compensation, leaving them destitute, was detained in 2007 after years of reporting and petitioning. Before he was imprisoned, Lin was also attacked by thugs hired by local officials who sought to keep him silent. (CHRD)[vii]
Trial Upcoming for Guangxi Village Leaders Detained over Efforts to Reclaim Farmland
CHRD learned on December 2 that a group of 14 villagers, including four democratically-elected leaders, from Yang Village, outside Laibin City, Guanxi Zhuang Autonomous Region will stand trial on December 14 on charges related to their land activism. The villagers have been in detention since April 1, when officers from the Xingbin District Public Security Bureau seized them in a midnight raid. Five other villagers originally taken into custody were later released on bail to await trial. The fourteen who remained in detention were formally arrested for “gathering a mob to loot and destroy production operations” on May 7. The villagers had organized others to reclaim farmland which had been promised to the village by local officials, but which had never been formally transferred or demarcated. (CHRD)[viii]
Hunan Teachers’ Representative Sent to RTL for Organizing Petitions
According to a CRLW report, Shaoyang City, Hunan Province teachers’ representative Li Wuyi (李伍一) has been sent to one year of Re-education through Labor (RTL) for organizing teachers to petition. According to the RTL notice, which was dated October 8, 2010, Li had been holding meetings at his home to organize teachers of “minban schools” (schools not operated by the state) who lost their jobs in the 1980s for violating the state’s family planning policy. In August 2010, Li led a group of teachers’ representatives to Beijing to petition, where they were seized by police. Li was administratively detained on September 25 for 15 days, and then sent to RTL by the Longhui County Public Security Bureau in Shaoyang City. (CRLW)[ix]
Updates on Post-Nobel Harassment of Activists
Ai Weiwei Barred from Travelling to South Korea
On the evening of December 2, Beijing artist and activist Ai Weiwei (艾未未) was stopped at the Beijing Capital International Airport en route to the Gwangju Biennale, a contemporary arts event in South Korea. A police officer barred Ai from boarding his flight though he had successfully passed through customs, showing him a handwritten note by the Beijing Public Security Bureau stating that his leaving the country “might endanger state security.” However, the police officer refused to allow Ai to keep the note. Police and border control officials are increasing their efforts to bar prominent members of Chinese civil society from travelling internationally as the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony approaches; for an updated list of cases documented by CHRD, please click here. (CHRD)[x]
Shandong Professor Sun Wenguang, Invited by Liu Xia to the Ceremony, is Refused Passport
On the morning of November 30, retired Shandong University professor Sun Wenguang (孙文广) was notified by the Jinan City Public Security Bureau that his application for a passport, which he submitted on November 15, had been denied. Sun applied for the passport in hopes of travelling to Oslo to attend the Nobel Peace Prize award ceremony on December 10. Sun is listed as one of the more than 140 human rights activists and dissidents Liu Xia has invited to the ceremony in a public letter she released earlier. Officials refused to give Sun an explanation as to why they would not issue him a passport. (CHRD)[xi]
Freedom of Assembly
China Democracy Party Organizers Summoned for Applying to Demonstrate
On the afternoon of December 1, Zhejiang democracy activists Wu Yilong (吴义龙), Zhu Zhengming (祝正明), Chen Shuqing (陈树庆), Wang Rongqing (王荣清), Zhu Yufu (朱虞夫), and Mao Qingxiang (毛庆祥) were all separately summoned for questioning by police in Hangzhou City. The six, all of whom were members of the Zhejiang branch of the China Democracy Party and were sentenced to prison following the 1998 crackdown on the party, had submitted an application to protest against their imprisonment and other harassment they have faced as a result of their political activities, as well as in support of other imprisoned dissidents, including Liu Xiaobo (刘晓波) and Liu Xianbin (刘贤斌).
CHRD has also learned from Wu Yilong that officials have refused to issue him a residency permit (hukou) or ID card more than two months after his release from prison. As a result, he has been unable to find employment or travel. Wu served 11 years in prison following a 1999 conviction for “subversion of state power.” (CHRD)[xii]
Forced Eviction and Demolition
Jiangsu Woman Hospitalized Following Fight over Ongoing Evictions in Nantong City
In Pingxi Village, Nantong City, Jiangsu Province on December 2, a group of residents were attacked after confronting demolition workers who refused to produce the proper paperwork before erecting a construction wall around an eviction site. The villagers, angered at what they believed to be an illegal forced eviction, blocked construction equipment belonging to the workers, who responded by violently hitting the villagers. One woman, Zhang Juan (张娟), was hospitalized following the clash. Police who were called to the scene did not adequately respond to the villagers’ complaints. Local officials have reportedly failed to make public the terms, including compensation and new living arrangements for affected residents, of the eviction and demolition currently being carried out, and have repeatedly harassed and threatened homeowners. (CHRD)[xiii]
Harassment of Activists
Suizhou City Activist Liu Feiyue Interrogated, Beaten for Travelling to Visit Qin Yongmin
On the morning of December 5, Suizhou City, Hubei Province human rights defender Liu Feiyue (刘飞跃) travelled to Wuhan City, Hubei, to visit with recently-released democracy activist Qin Yongmin (秦永敏). After meeting with Qin, Liu was seized by four Wuhan City National Security officers and taken to the Xingouqiao police station in Wuhan for questioning. That evening, a group of National Security officers and Department of Education officials from Suizhou arrived in Wuhan, where one of them cursed Liu for “embarrassing” officials in Suizhou, and twice struck him violently. The officials confiscated Liu’s cell phone as well as some papers he was carrying, and forcibly returned him to Suizhou that night. (CHRD)[xiv]
Anhui Activist Seized, Questioned after Photographing Forced Eviction
On the morning of December 6, police in Hefei City, Anhui Province took away activist and member of CHRD Zhou Weilin (周维林), the third instance in the past month in which Zhou has been targeted for questioning and harassment by local authorities. Zhou had been taking photographs at the site of a forced eviction when he was approached by subdistrict office staff who insisted that he stop and then called the police after he refused. Zhou has since been released but his photography equipment as well as his computer have been confiscated by the police. Zhou is disabled from injuries suffered in a factory and uses a wheelchair. (CHRD)[xv]
Tianjin Activist Placed under Soft Detention to Prevent Legal Publicity Day Protest
CHRD has learned that Tianjin-based human rights and anti-corruption activist Zhang Jianzhong (张建中) has been placed under soft detention at his home by police. The authorities are reportedly concerned over plans by Tianjin petitioners to hold a demonstration on Legal Publicity Day, December 3. Since December 1, an officer has been stationed at the entrance to Zhang’s building. Zhang has faced restrictions on his activities for years since reporting on corruption and illegal activities by police and public transportation officials in Tianjin. (CHRD)[xvi]
Police Harass Recently-Released Democracy Activist Qin Yongmin
On the morning of December 1, police arrived at the Wuhan City, Hubei Province home of recently-released democracy activist Qin Yongmin (秦永敏), threatening and abusing him and accusing him of accepting interviews with domestic and international media. Qin began to feel unwell, and his blood pressure rose dangerously high. In addition to this instance of harassment, police have also installed three surveillance cameras outside of Qin’s home. (CHRD)[xvii]
Editors: David Smalls and Lin Sang
Follow us on Twitter: @CHRDnet
[i] “Beijing Youth Wang Zhongxia Taken Away by Police for Seeking to Visit Liu Di” (北京青年王仲夏因寻找刘荻被警察带 走), December 7, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012072302.shtml
[ii] “Democratically elected village head was tried in leg irons, his lawyers beaten in court 民选村长戴镣庭审， 代理律师法庭被打,” December 7, 2010, http://www.peacehall.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012071751.shtml
[iii] “Large Number of Petitioners Detained in Black Jial on Legal Publicity Day” (法制宣传日大批访民被关进久敬庄黑监狱), December 4, 2010, http://www.peacehall.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012042001.shtml
[iv] “On Eve of Shaanxi Rights-Defending Village Head’s Trial, Four More Villagers Criminally Detained” (陕西维权村长高强案开庭前又有四村民被刑拘(图)), December 6, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012062044.shtml
[v] “Chen Xi, Liao Shuangyuan Taken Away by Police” (陈西、廖双元被派出所带走), December 6, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012062131.shtml
[vi] “As Inner Mongolia Scholar Hada Approaches End of Sentence, Wife and Children Suddenly Detained, House Searched” (内蒙学者哈达刑满前夕，妻儿突遭抄家拘留(图)), December 5, 2010, http://www.peacehall.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012050920.shtml
[vii] “Lin Yingqiang, Representative of Fuzhou Residents Who Lost Land, Released from Prison after Completing Sentence” (福州失地维权代表林应强刑满出狱(图)), December 6, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012061817.shtml
[viii] “Wei Chunyong and 13 Other Human Rights Activists Face Trial After Seven Months of Detention in Laibin City, Guangxi Province” (广西来宾市韦春勇等14名维权代表被羁押7个月面临审判(图)), December 3, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012030920.shtml
[ix] “Hunan Community-Run School Teachers’ Rights Representative Li Wuyi Sent to RTL” (湖南民办教师维权代表李伍一被劳 教(图)), December 1, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012011521.shtml
[x] “Prominent Artist and Activist Ai Weiwei Prevented from Leaving Country en route to South Korea” (著名艺术家艾未未前往韩国被禁止出境), December 2, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012022251.shtml
[xi] “Police Unreasonably Deny Professor Sun Wenguang’s Passport Application” (孙文广教授申请办理护 照遭公安机关无理拒绝(图)), December 1, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012012334.shtml
[xii] “Zhejiang Democracy Activist Wu Yilong and Others Summoned for Applying to Demonstrate” (浙江民主党人吴义龙等 人因申请游行被传唤), December 1, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012011944.shtml and “Two and a Half Months after Release from Prison, Wu Yilong Unable to Obtain Hukou or ID Card, Applies to Demonstrate on Behalf of Fellow Victims and to Uphold Rights” (吴义龙出狱 两月半得不到户口与身份证，为伸张权利与难友们申请游行), December 1, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012011406.shtml
[xiii] “Pingchao, Nantong Illegally Builds Enclosure Wall, Zhang Juan Hospitalized for Treatment after Being Violently Beaten” (南通平潮镇非法圈地，张娟被暴打入院治疗(图)), December 3, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012031716.shtml
[xiv] “Liu Feiyue Beaten by Suizhou National Security Officers for Paying Visit to Qin Yongmin” ), (刘 飞跃拜访秦永敏先生被随州国保殴打), December 6, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012061147.shtml
[xv] “CHRD Information Team Member Zhou Weilin Taken Away by Police” (维权网信息员周维林被警方带走), December 6, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012061229.shtml
[xvi] “Tianjin Rights Activist Zhang Jianzhong Put under Soft Detention on Legal Propaganda Day” (天津维权人士张建中法制宣传日前被软禁), December 3, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012031101.shtml
[xvii] “Qin Yongmin, Recently Released from Prison, Suffers High Blood Pressure after Being Abused by Police During Visit” (刚出狱的秦永敏因警察上门谩骂，致血压陡升出现严重不适), December 1, 2010, http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2010/12/201012012230.shtml