Dissident artist on trial in China for satirical Mao sculptures, rights group says
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By Reuters
Originally published by NBC News on March 31, 2026
Gao Zhen, 69, who was detained in 2024 during a visit from the U.S., faces a maximum three-year prison sentence after a closed-door, one-day trial.
BEIJING — Chinese dissident artist Gao Zhen, famous for making provocative satirical sculptures of former leader Mao Zedong, was tried Monday on accusations of “defaming national heroes and martyrs,” his wife and a rights group said.
Gao, 69, who was detained in 2024 during a visit from the U.S., faces a maximum three-year prison sentence, said his wife, Zhao Yaliang, and Shane Yi, a researcher at the Chinese Human Rights Defenders group which operates outside the country.
The closed-door, one-day trial took place at Sanhe City People’s Court in Hebei province neighboring the capital, Beijing, and ended without a verdict, Zhao and Yi told Reuters, citing information from his lawyers.
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The New York-based artist, who moved to the U.S. in 2022, was detained in August 2024 on a family visit to China even though he had made multiple trips there without issues, Yi added.
“This really shows the Chinese government’s logic, when they want to target someone, they can use anything in their power to do so,” she said.
“Gao Zhen is an artist. He has a right to artistic freedom, period.”
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Gao is suffering from malnutrition and has lumbar spine disease, as well as chronic knee and eye conditions that need treatment, Yi said.
Gao was charged for works between 2005 and 2009, Yi said, even though China’s “Law on the Protection of Heroes and Martyrs” was only established in 2018 and strengthened in 2021.
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