China Human Rights Briefing

April 21-May 1, 2006

May 1:  TIME nominates activist Chen Guangcheng as one of 100 people "who shape our world"
Time magazine nominated the blind Shandong activist Chen Guangcheng as one of 100 people who shape our world in its April 30, 2006 edition ( http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1186887,00.html ). Chen Guangcheng has now been detained without charge for 51 days. He may face criminal charges for his work in defending rights. Chen had been under house arrest since September 6, 2005. He was detained and taken to the local police station on March 11 when he tried to leave the house to meet officials regarding the case of villager Chen Guangyu, a relative of his. Chen Guangyu had been beaten up by four hooded men wielding wooden sticks while police guards outside his house looked on and failed to intervene. No warrant has been issued for Chen Guangcheng's arrest, and his family has not been told where he is being detained. His wife, Yuan Weijing, was also assaulted by police on the same day her husband was taken into custody. According to sources, Chen Guangcheng has now been transferred to a government-run vacation site called Victoria Holiday Village in Yinan County. Lawyers for Chen Guangcheng believe he may face criminal charges for "providing information to overseas organizations."  (For additional information and background, see http://www.crd-net.org/Article_Show.asp?ArticleID=1014 , http://www.crd-net.org/Article_Show.asp?ArticleID=442 )

April 27:   Zheng Enchong to continue work for forced eviction victims after release

Shanghai human rights lawyer Zheng Enchong is due for release in June 2006 when he will complete his three-year prison term. He issued a statement through his family that that he would continue his work for victims of forced evictions after his release. Prior to his detention and conviction on charges of "illegally releasing state secrets" on October 28, 2003 , Zheng represented the interests of more than 500 such cases, challenging violations of people's economic and social rights by local government and business people. He was sentenced to three years in prison for sending information about these actions to groups overseas and was allegedly subjected to torture and ill-treatment in prison. Zheng's most notable case was a law suit on behalf of people forcibly evicted for a development project run by Shanghai tycoon Zhou Zhengyi, charging that Zhou had engaged in corruption to obtain the land he had taken over for investment. Zhou Zhengyi was himself later convicted on corruption charges, and will complete his three-year prison term in May 2006. His wife, former general manager of Shanghai Land, Mao Yuping, was charged by the Hong Kong Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) in January this year for 12 counts of conspiracy to defraud relating to letters of credits worth more than HK$49 million based on bogus business transactions, and was sentenced to 32 months in prison by the Hong Kong District Court in January 2006. For details about Zheng Enchong and his human rights defense work see:  Article_Class.asp?ClassID=43 ( Chinese)

April 26: Delay in judgment in trial of Fujian farmer Huang Weizhong sign of controversy over verdict

The delay in pronouncing the court judgment in the case of Putian farmer, activist Huang Weizhong, in Fujian Province may be an indication that there are divisions of opinion within the judiciary or a sign of external intervention.

A verdict in the case should have been announced on April 18, 2006, but the Putian City Chengxiang District People's Court did not follow proper procedure by pronouncing the judgment, and also refused to issue a written record to the family about the delay, and Huang's family was only informed verbally of the one-month postponement.  Huang Weizhong's family had appealed against the delay, handing a copy of the "Circular of the Supreme People's Court Regarding 10 measures to Prevent Detention over Time Limits" issued on December 1, 2003 to the court. On April 25, an official then gave them a document entitled," Chengxiang District People' s Court of Putian City Notice of Conditions Requiring Adjustment of Time Limits for Judgment "( 《莆田市城廂區法院審限變動情況通知書》 ).  If there is insufficient evidence to convict, CRD believes the court should issue a not-guilty verdict and release Huang Weizhong immediately. CRD believes that the postponement of the court judgment may indicate intervention by outside forces, which would be a violation of international principles on fair trial and judicial independence. Keeping Huang Weizhong in detention if there is no evidence he committed the crimes with which he has been charged violates his fundamental human rights and will be of no help in resolving the dispute between farmers and local government on land expropriation.

April 22:

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