Guangdong Activist Held on Subversion Charges

August 19, 2013       Comments Off on Guangdong Activist Held on Subversion Charges

Originally published by  CHINA DIGITAL TIMES on August 12, 2013

Reuters reports that authorities have arrested dissident Yang Lin in Guangdong province on charges of “inciting subversion of state power,” according to his brother:

In China, an inciting subversion charge is commonly levelled against critics of one-party rule. It carries a maximum penalty of five years in jail, though lengthier sentences have been handed down.

Yang Mingzhu said he had received a notice of his brother’s arrest, dated July 19, but it gave few details.

The U.S.-based group Chinese Human Rights Defenders said Yang Lin, had spent a year in a labor camp, and he was also a signatory of “Charter 08″ – a manifesto organized by jailed Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Liu Xiaobo – which calls for political reform.

“He would not hesitate in throwing himself wholeheartedly in helping disadvantaged citizens fight for their rights and in activities promoting constitutional democracy,” the advocacy group said on its website on Sunday. [Source]

Yang’s arrest comes less than a month after authorities in Beijing detained anti-corruption activist Xu Zhiyong, who appeared in a smuggled video that emerged last week. Xu is one of at least 16 members of the group called “New Citizens Movement” to have been detained this year in a crackdown which his lawyer says is being orchestrated by politicians “who cannot account for their personal assets,” according to The Telegraph’s Tom Phillips.

Separately on Monday, the lawyer for Caixin Media reporter Chen Baocheng told Radio Free Asia that his client had been detained for his participation in a forced eviction dispute in Sichuan province. In a statement released Sunday, Caixin said it learned of the detentions through web posts on Saturday:

Caixin immediately tried to get in touch with Chen, but failed. It then commissioned a lawyer to contact the Pingdu police to learn more about the incident and law enforcement procedures. However, as of the release of this statement, the police have not responded. On the night of August 10, Caixin prepared a written inquiry to send to the Pingdu police bureau. A police officer surnamed Ma who answered our call said the bureau’s fax machine was broken and refused to receive the letter or answer any questions about Chen.

More than 24 hours have passed since the detention and the Pingdu police have not released any information to the public. This despite repeated efforts from Caixin and the great attention on social media sites. [Source]