News - Chinese Human Rights DefendersChinese Human Rights Defenders

[CHRB] Arrest of Cao Shunli Confirmed; Mysterious Death of Petitioner in Custody and More (10/24-31, 2013)

November 1, 2013 Comments Off

Detained activist Cao Shunli (曹顺利) is suffering from deteriorating health due to lack of medical attention, according to her lawyer. The 52-year-old Beijing-based activist looks very thin and needs urgent treatment for a severe liver disease. The lawyer submitted a bail request on October 31 for Cao to be released (read more…)

[CHRB] Activist Said to Be Secretly Sentenced to 4 Years, Enforced Disappearance of Tibetan Monk (7/10-17/2014)

July 17, 2014 Comments Off

Guangdong activist Huang Wenxun (黄文勋) is said to have been secretly tried and sentenced to four years in prison for “inciting subversion of state power” in Hubei Province. Senior Tibetan monk and scholar Tenzin Lhunrup (丹增龙珠) reportedly disappeared in May 2014 after being seized by police in Diru County in (read more…)

Show Trial of Jiangxi Activists Suspended: Lawyers Demanded Releases, Calling Detentions Unlawful

October 29, 2013 Comments Off

A Chinese court had to suspend the trial of activists Liu Ping (刘萍), Wei Zhongping (魏忠平), and Li Sihua (李思华) on October 28 in Jiangxi Province after defendants and lawyers protested myriad violations of legal rights. A lawyer told CHRD that the prosecutors and the court were pushed back in (read more…)

[CHRB] Violence Against Lawyers Representing Christians in Henan, Many Activists Indicted (12/12-12/18, 2013)

December 19, 2013 Comments Off

Authorities have harassed and assaulted a group of lawyers in retaliation for taking on the cases of Zhang Shaojie (张少杰), a church pastor in Henan Province who has been detained, and 23 other detained church members. The lawyers have been consistently blocked from meeting their clients, who were taken into (read more…)

[CHRB] Cao Shunli’s Detention Confirmed, Crackdown Expands as China Touts “Achievements” at UN Review (10/17-23, 2013)

October 24, 2013 Comments Off

On the eve of the UN’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) on China, two more activists were arrested in the crackdown on civil society, bringing the number of known arrests to 34 as authorities have suppressed peaceful assembly, association, and expression since March. Authorities also confirmed the criminal detention of activist (read more…)

[CHRB] Nearly 100 Detained, Restricted in Movement Around 25th Tiananmen Anniversary (5/30-6/5/2014)

June 5, 2014 Comments Off

CHRD to date has documented 43 criminal detentions and two arrests, beginning in April, in the most suppressive crackdown seen in China around June Fourth anniversaries. In total, CHRD has confirmed that 91 individuals have been detained, disappeared, questioned by police, or put under house arrest or forcibly taken “to (read more…)

[CHRB] Crackdown Before 6/4 Anniversary: 50 People Detained, Disappeared or Summoned (5/23-5/29/2014)

May 30, 2014 Comments Off

Authorities continue to detain citizens in the days before the quarter-century anniversary of the Tiananmen Massacre. To date, CHRD has tracked 50 individuals affected by the crackdown. In addition, police in separate cases have criminally detained writer Jiang Lijun (姜力均) and netizen Liu Wei (刘伟), each on a charge of (read more…)

[CHRB] Detained Activists Face Worsening Health & Mistreatment, Denied Access to Lawyers, and More (10/10-10/16, 2013)

October 17, 2013 Comments Off

Detained Hubei activist Liu Jiacai (刘家财) appears to be dealing with worsening health, according to his lawyer. Liu’s wife said that her husband has a heart problem, and she has not been able to visit him. In Chibi City, activist Yuan Fengchu (袁奉初, aka Yuan Bing, 袁兵) was allowed to (read more…)

[CHRB] Under Criminal Detention: Labor Activist, Buddhist Priest & Rights Lawyers (5/16-22, 2014)

May 22, 2014 Comments Off

Wu Guijun (吴贵军), a labor organizer in Guangdong Province, has been detained for one year a charge of “gathering a crowd to disrupt social order,” and been tried four times without a verdict.Five individuals have been detained in Hubei Province for “inciting subversion of state power,” including Sheng Guan (圣观), (read more…)

CHRD Suggestions for UPR Recommendations to China

October 15, 2013 Comments Off

(Chinese Human Rights Defenders, October 15, 2013) – In the run-up to the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) on China at the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) on October 22, 2013, CHRD suggests governments of UN member states participating in the review make robust, specific, and relevant recommendations to China.

[CHRB] New Government Rules to Punish Journalists for Disclosing “State Secrets,” Detained Lawyer Repeatedly Denied Access to Lawyer

July 7, 2014 Comments Off

A court has sent Christian pastor Zhang Shaojie (张少杰) to prison for 12 years, an indication of the CCP’s uneasiness with rights activism connected to religious institutions. Rights lawyer Chang Boyang (常柏阳) was formally arrested on July 3 on a charge of “illegal business activity,” apparently due to his work (read more…)

[CHRB] Violence & Black Jail Await Petitioners; RTL Victim Seeking Justice Stonewalled (12/5-12/11, 2013)

December 12, 2013 Comments Off

Local authorities detained 73-year-old petitioner Xu Wanying (许万英) in a “black jail” in Hubei Province, after she was intercepted. During her detention, the head of the local women’s association group violently assaulted Xu. In a separate incident, Wang Defang (王德芳) and Shi Wenxuan (时文选) were badly beaten by two unidentified (read more…)