Sydney | Chinese Human Rights Defenders

Shandong petitioner sentenced to 4 years in prison for taking money from government staff

August 5, 2016 Comments Off

Originally published by Hong Kong Free Press on July 23, 2016 A petitioner who was sent to psychiatric hospitals has been sentenced to four years in prison for taking money from stability maintenance personnel, The Paper reported. Xu Xueling, a 53 year old petitioner, demanded RMB 37,700 (HK$43,818) from government staff responsible for “stability (read more…)

Strange interview raises fears about Beijing’s influence over Hong Kong’s paper of record

August 5, 2016 Comments Off

Originally published by Shanghaiist on July 28, 2016 The South China Morning Post is stuck between a rock and a hard place as critics have begun to question the (once) venerable newspaper’s peculiar interview with a young activist who had been detained by Chinese authorities for over a year. The activist (read more…)

Xu Zhiqiang (徐志强)

August 2, 2016 Comments Off

Xu Zhiqiang 徐志强 Crime: Inciting subversion of state power Length of Punishment: Four years Court: Wuhan City Intermediate People’s Court, Hubei Province Trial Date: April 21, 2015 Sentencing Date: April 8, 2016 Dates of Detention/Arrest: May 17, 2014 (detained); June 25, 2014 (arrested) Place of Incarceration: Wuhan City No. (read more…)

Secrecy Shrouding “709” Detainees Pre-empts “Fairness” of Trial

July 31, 2016 Comments Off

Four rights defenders held incommunicado for over one year may face imminent trials at the Tianjin No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court on charges of “subversion of state power.” The trials may begin as soon as Monday, August 1, according to unconfirmed information CHRD received. Chinese authorities have failed to notify (read more…)

Zhai Yanmin (翟岩民)

July 27, 2016 Comments Off

Zhai Yanmin 翟岩民 (released on suspended sentence, under police control) Crime: Subversion of state power Length of Punishment: Three years, suspended for four years Court: Tianjin No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court Trial Date: August 2, 2016 Sentencing Date: August 2, 2016 Dates of Detention/Arrest: June 15, 2015 (detained);January 8, 2016 (read more…)

Chinese authorities issue arrest notice for founder of protest-tracking blog

July 22, 2016 Comments Off

Originally published by Hong Kong Free Press on July 22, 2016 Chinese authorities have issued a formal arrest notice for citizen journalist Lu Yuyu after detaining him for five weeks, Chinese news outlet Weiquanwang reported on Thursday. Lu is founder of the blog “Not News”, which keeps track of and reports on mass demonstrations in China (read more…)

Works by purged Chinese leader Zhao published in Hong Kong

July 22, 2016 Comments Off

Originally published by Bangkok Post on July 21, 2016 HONG KONG – A trove of newly published documents belonging to a purged Chinese leader has been launched at Hong Kong’s book fair, despite fears Beijing is tightening freedom of expression in the city. Former premier and Communist Party general secretary Zhao Ziyang (read more…)

Verfolgungswelle in China: Freilassung von Anwälten gefordert

July 22, 2016 Comments Off

Originally published by Tiroler Tageszeitung Online on July 8, 2016 Peking (APA/dpa) – Zum Jahrestag des Beginns der Verfolgungswelle gegen Bürgerrechtsanwälte in China haben Menschenrechtsorganisationen die Freilassung der Inhaftierten gefordert. Noch immer seien rund 20 Anwälte, Mitarbeiter und Aktivisten in Haft. Ihnen würden grundlegende Rechte verwehrt, kritisierten Menschenrechtler und Diplomaten am (read more…)

China Lawyer Crackdown Enters 2nd Year With Calls for Releases

July 22, 2016 Comments Off

Originally published by Voice of America on July 8, 2016 After a year-long detention, Zhao Wei, a 24-year-old assistant to a prominent lawyer, was released Thursday after she had confessed her crimes and had shown a good attitude, according to police and her lawyer. “I was too simple-minded. I didn’t know (read more…)

Wu Zeheng (吴泽衡)

July 22, 2016 Comments Off

Wu Zeheng 吴泽衡 Crimes: Organizing or using an illegal cult to undermine implementation of the law (12 years), rape (life), fraud (14 years), production and sale of harmful food (6 years) Length of Punishment: life imprisonment Court: Zhuhai City Intermediate People’s Court, Guangdong Province Trial Date: October 30, 2015 Sentencing (read more…)

Lü Gengsong (吕耿松)

July 22, 2016 Comments Off

Lü Gengsong 吕耿松 (released) Crime: Subversion of state power Length of Punishment: 11 years Court: Hangzhou City Intermediate People’s Court, Zhejiang Province Trial Date: September 29, 2015 Sentencing Date: June 14, 2016 Dates of Detention/Arrest: July 7, 2014 (detained); August 13, 2014 (arrested) Verdict: Zhejiang Province Hangzhou City Intermediate (read more…)

Chen Shuqing (陈树庆)

July 22, 2016 Comments Off

Chen Shuqing 陈树庆 (released) Crime: Subversion of state power Length of Punishment: 10.5 years Court: Hangzhou City Intermediate People’s Court, Zhejiang Province Trial Date: September 29, 2015 Sentencing Date: June 14, 2016 Dates of Detention/Arrest: September 11, 2014 (detained); October 21, 2014 (arrested) Place of Incarceration: Qiaosi Prison in Hangzhou (read more…)