News - Chinese Human Rights DefendersChinese Human Rights Defenders

Politically Charged Arrests in China Escalate Persecution of Rights Lawyers

January 14, 2016 Comments Off

CHRD condemns the actions of Chinese authorities who this week formally arrested 11 lawyers, paralegals, and activists on serious charges, politicizing Chinese lawyers’ efforts to protect human rights. CHRD sees the new arrests as indication of a drastic escalation of President Xi Jinping’s campaign against human rights lawyers. Since July (read more…)

[CHRB] Torture of Chinese Human Rights Lawyer Emblematic of Persistent Pattern of Official Reprisal & Abuse (1/1-7, 2016)

January 8, 2016 Comments Off

Human rights lawyer Shu Xiangxin (舒向新) was reportedly subjected to torture and other forms of ill-treatment in a detention center on January 4, in a case emblematic of the harsh reprisals that Chinese human rights lawyers can face. The incident is indicative of the persistence of torture in China’s detention (read more…)

Verdict against Human Rights Lawyer Pu Zhiqiang A Travesty of Justice

December 22, 2015 Comments Off

CHRD condemns the guilty verdict, with a suspended three-year sentence, handed down to prominent human rights lawyer Pu Zhiqiang (浦志强) by the Beijing No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court today. The ruling makes a mockery of the Chinese President Xi Jinping’s “rule of the country with law” and China’s criminal justice (read more…)

Free Pu Zhiqiang: Staunch Defender of Free Speech in China Faces Trial for 7 Posts on Weibo

December 10, 2015 Comments Off

Human rights lawyer Pu Zhiqiang (浦志强), well-known in China as a staunch defender of free speech, will be tried in Beijing on December 14, 2015, according to his lawyers. The charismatic Pu, 50, has been detained for over 19 months without trial, and is accused of “picking quarrels and instigating (read more…)

[CHRB] Convictions & Sentences Follow Detainee Mistreatment, Flawed Trials (11/23-12/3/2015)

December 3, 2015 Comments Off

Courts in Guangdong sentenced four activists to prison in late November, with the flurry of punishments sparking international criticism over the unfair trials and mistreatment of the detainees. In another case, veteran dissident journalist Gao Yu (高瑜) has had her sentence reduced to five years, and will be able to (read more…)

Join CHRD’s “Free 10 by 12/10” Campaign in Run-up to International Human Rights Day

December 1, 2015 Comments Off

To mark this year’s International Human Rights Day, we invite you to join CHRD’s “Free 10 by 12/10” Campaign for the release of 10 human rights defenders who have been detained or imprisoned in China. Each day from December 1 through to Human Rights Day on December 10, we will (read more…)

Unaccountability at Root of Persistent Torture in China

November 10, 2015 Comments Off

The Chinese government has systematically failed to prevent torture, hold torturers accountable, and respect the rights of torture victims, a report by CHRD and a coalition of Chinese human rights defenders finds. Torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and punishment remain persistent and widespread in China. Authorities often ignore (read more…)

CHRD Decries Grossly Unjust Life Sentence Against Buddhist Leader Wu Zeheng

November 5, 2015 Comments Off

CHRD finds a Chinese court’s sentence of the Buddhist leader Wu Zeheng (吴泽恒) to life in prison excessively harsh and grossly unjust. The decision, which was announced in a closed-door hearing in Guangdong on October 30, highlights the wider religious suppression occurring in China over the past few years. This (read more…)

[CHRB] Chinese Government Refuses to Disclose Data on Torture for UN Review, Citizens Face Reprisals for Seeking Information (10/22-29, 2015)

October 29, 2015 Comments Off

Since this spring, the Chinese government has repeatedly denied requests from activists seeking detailed information on data that it submitted to the UN on state agents who have been prosecuted for crimes related to torture. For their efforts, the Chinese activists have faced reprisals—in the form of police harassment and (read more…)

[CHRB] Detailed Case of Police Abuse to Extract Confession Comes to Light Weeks Before UN Review of China’s Torture Record (10/16-22, 2015)

October 23, 2015 Comments Off

Jiangsu activist Shen Aibin (沈爱斌) recently came forward with details of the inhumane tactics used by Chinese police to extract a confession from him in 2013 after he and other human rights defenders rescued petitioners from a “black jail” in the city of Wuxi. Shen’s case, by no means an (read more…)

《中华人民共和国国家安全法》为人权侵害开绿灯

October 18, 2015 Comments Off

“人权捍卫者联网”声明（2015年7月30日）《中华人民共和国国家安全法》于2015年7月1日由全国人大常委通过生效，这部法律相当于在法律上护航中国政府对民间异议与公民自由的全面压制，举凡政治、少数民族与宗教层面无不包罗。这部法律对“国家安全”的定义宽泛潦草，其中有关条文将异议观点、宗教信仰、网络资讯以及对中国的所谓“网络主权”挑战一一入罪。除此以外，它还法定了一系列公民与团体必须遵从的“义务”清单，疏忽者可能需负刑责。

[CHRB] End Violence Against Human Rights Lawyers (10/9-10/15/2015)

October 15, 2015 Comments Off

Since President Xi Jinping came to power in March 2013, there has been a surge in incidents of violent assaults against human rights lawyers in retaliation for their work defending clients in politically “sensitive” cases. CHRD has documented 23 incidents involving 32 lawyers in this time period. Some lawyers have (read more…)