Human rights lawyers defend the human rights of citizens by providing legal counsel and defense through the legal procedures. Not only certified lawyers, but also legal scholars and ordinary citizens knowledgeable about the law, can defend human rights in this fashion. Their work supports protections of the basic human rights of those facing detention and prosecution, such as the right to legal consultation, right to a public trial, and right against arbitrary detention, arrest, and right not to be subjected to torture, etc.  

Because of the nature of their work, Chinese authorities have monitored human rights lawyers closely.  In some cases, human rights lawyers have been harassed or beaten, put under residential surveillance or house arrest, detained, or imprisoned.  In this section, we document some cases.  

The crackdown on human rights lawyers has not been random, but systematic. For example, in March 2006, the government-sponsored All-China Lawyers Association promulgated a document titled, “Guidelines on Collective Lawsuits,” which requires lawyers handling lawsuits that involve groups of people to be supervised and pre-approved by judicial and administrative organs, which are to try to minimize the number of such suits; lawsuits involving ten or more plaintiffs must be supervised and pre-approved by local government officials. These guidelines also forbid lawyers from accepting interviews about such cases from domestic and international media and require lawyers to seek, under threat of punishment, permission from their law firms before taking on such a case. These regulations make it easy for local officials to interfere with a human rights lawyer’s work. In addition, plaintiffs who wish to sue the government often cannot afford lawyers individually, and so the restriction on seeking a lawyer to act for a group of plaintiffs serves as a barrier to pursuing legal redress. Human rights lawyers willing to provide pro bono service also are not allowed under these regulations to represent many plaintiffs in one lawsuit at once. 

In addition, local Public Security and prosecution authorities use the crime “lawyers providing false evidence” （律师伪证罪 PRC Criminal Code, Article 306) to jail lawyers, particularly those lawyers who challenge their handling of specific cases. According to one official source cited by knowledgeable lawyers, at least 500 lawyers have been investigated or prosecuted on suspicion of “providing false evidence” between 1997 and 2005.  It is unclear how many of these were convicted. Lawyers who spoke to families or potential witness about cases that are undergoing criminal investigation by the state prosecutors can be prosecuted under this law. 

Furthermore, as we document in the selected cases below, the Law on Lawyers (promulgated in 1996), though it offers some protection to lawyers and clients, further restricts the independence of Chinese lawyers. For example, lawyers are required to renew their license annually with the Justice Bureau. A lawyer’s annual membership fee for the local lawyers’ association must be paid by a law firm that employs the lawyer and sponsors the lawyer’s license renewal, or a lawyer cannot continue practicing law.  If a lawyer is disliked by local officials, the Bureau may indicate this to the Lawyers’ Association and the law firm where the lawyer is employed.  The lawyer would either be warned about certain involvement with the threat not to be sponsored by the law firm for renewal of membership, or such sponsorship could be abruptly dropped.  The Justice Bureau also has power to suspend the legal registration of a law firm, hence the right to practice of all lawyers employed there. These regulations limit the independence of lawyers’ associations and ensure that the police and prosecutors play a larger role than lawyers in the judicial processes. 

In 2006, Chinese criminal defense lawyers continued to encounter many obstacles in defending the rights of their clients. First, it was difficult to meet with their clients. Though the law stipulates that the client must meet the lawyer within 48 hours after arrest under normal circumstances, the police do not strictly follow the law. It takes anywhere from 10 days to half a month, and sometimes even a few months for lawyers to obtain permission to meet with their clients. The second problem is the difficulty in obtaining evidence. Prosecutors only send what they deem to be important evidence to the court. The evidence that is not presented to the court is often favorable to the defense. Lawyers who try to collect such evidence risk being charged with “providing false evidence.” The third problem is the difficulty in obtaining testimonies from witnesses. Following Chinese law, criminal lawyers need to obtain the witness’s consent before the witness testifies. They also need to obtain the prosecutor’s permission for the prosecutor’s witness. But, if the prosecutors ask for witnesses, all witnesses must comply. The fourth problem is the difficulty in getting witnesses to appear before court. According to rough estimates, 90% of criminal cases have no witnesses appearing in court. Instead, prosecutors alone are allowed to present to the court what they have recorded in writing in interviews with the witnesses. 

There were many more cases than we could document here in 2006 of these various forms of restrictions on human rights lawyers. We begin with the 14 lawyers named by Asia Week “the Most influential people in 2005.” Most of them were monitored, harassed, or even jailed in 2006. These 14 Chinese law practitioners (including “barefoot” lawyers and legal scholars) included Chen Guangcheng, a self-taught legal adviser from Linyi, Shandong, now serving a prison sentence (see above); Gao Zhisheng, director of Beijing Shengzhi Law Firm, convicted of crimes and given a suspended sentence, now under house arrest; Yang Maodong (Guo Feixiong), legal scholar/adviser to Taishi villagers in Panyu, Guangdong, detained awaiting trial (see above); Pu Zhiqiang and Teng Biao, lawyers of Beijing Huayi Law Firm, monitored by national security officials; Mo Shaoping, director of the Mo Shaoping Law Office; Li Baiguang, legal scholar and independent legal consultant, monitored with restricted movement, and Xu Zhiyong, legal scholar, adviser, also elected deputy to the local People’s Congress, monitored by police; Zheng Enchong, recently released after serving three years in prison, and Guo Guoting, who was forced to leave the country to avoid persecution, both lawyers from Shanghai; Li Heping, associate of Bejing Gaobo Longhua Law Firm, under surveillance; Fan Yafeng, J.D. from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and an employee at the Law Institute of the Academy, who is monitored and has been questioned by police several times; Zhang Xingshui, lawyer of Jingding Law Firm; and Zhu Jiuhu, formerly a lawyer at the Beijing Jietong Law Firm who has lost his license to practice. Below is a more detailed account of the situation faced by these and other lawyers.  

Gao Zhisheng (高智晟): Formerly a lawyer and director of the Beijing Shengzhi Law Firm, which had its license suspended by the Beijing Justice Bureau in November 2005.  Gao and colleagues represented defendants who were persecuted for activities associated with the banned sect Falun Gong and unofficial Christian house churches.  Mr. Gao was also outspoken in the overseas media about rights violations.  The Beijing Justice Bureau warned Gao, asking him to retract an open letter to the country’s top leaders about the persecution of Falun Gong members, but he refused. Then on November 4, 2005, the Bureau announced that Gao Zhisheng’s Law Firm’s license would be suspended for a year. When the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture visited China in late November, he met with Gao, but Gao was kept under close surveillance soon after the visit. In December 2005, the government banned Gao from practicing law entirely and kept him under surveillance. Gao called for a national hunger strike in protest against rights abuses. As described above, several participants were arrested or questioned. Gao continued to give interviews to overseas media, expressing strong criticism of the government.  

Gao was abducted in mid-August 2006 in Dongying, Shandong Province. On December 22, Gao was tried in camera for “inciting subversion of state power” at the Beijing Municipal No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court. He was sentenced to a three-year prison term with a five-year suspension of service, and was stripped of political rights for one year, and put under residential surveillance immediately at his home in Beijing.  According to Xinhua News, he was sentenced because he published nine articles in Falun Gong operated websites and publications such as Dajiyuan and Kan Zhongguo, such as the article “Gao Zhisheng’s open letter to Hu Jintao and Wen Jiabao,” documenting cases and demanding high-level investigation of the persecution of Falun Gong members. The evidence against him also included interviews he gave to other foreign media organizations such as Radio Free Asia and the Voice of Hope which contained materials allegedly “subversive to the state.” Since his release, he has been barred from contacting anybody outside his family.  In April 2007, he called a supporter in Beijing to detail his experiences of being ill-treated in prison and his current “imprisonment” at home. 

Zheng Enchong (郑恩宠): formerly a lawyer who provided legal assistance to victims of forced evictions and housing activists in Shanghai.  For these activities, he was sent to jail for three years. Zheng finished serving his prison term in 2006 but has not regained his freedom.  He remains under close police surveillance and his contacts with the media and supporters are obstructed by police. According to Chinese law, once convicted of any crime, a lawyer can no longer return to the profession. While in jail, in March 2005, Zheng was severely beaten by guards. In December 2005, Zheng received the German Judges Association’s annual human rights award. In December 2006, after his release, he received the Housing Rights Defender Award. 

Zheng was detained on June 6, 2003, and formally arrested on June 18 for “leaking state secrets” because he had provided information to an overseas human rights organization about his clients’ cases. On December 28, 2003, he was sentenced to three years in prison at Shanghai’s Tilanqiao Prison and stripped of political rights for one year. In the second half of 1994, Zheng filed an administrative lawsuit representing almost 500 households who had lost private property and were forcibly relocated during the “city development” process. They accused the Shanghai municipal government of colluding with rich businessmen and asked for compensation for the deprivation of their property rights. Because of his work, Zheng became a target for government-business alliances who had benefited from the urban development. Starting in 1995, the Shanghai Justice Bureau continually delayed renewal of Zheng’s law license by two to six months each year, eventually suspending his license in 2001. One reason for the suspension was that he publicly advocated revision of Article 10 of the Chinese Constitution, which allows the government to seize private property.  Though he lost his license, Zheng continued to provide legal consultation for victims of housing property rights abuses. 

Li Baiguang (李柏光): Legal scholar and an adviser at the Beijing Anping Law Firm.  After his legal probation expired in early 2006, Li resumed his lawyerly work advising victims seeking redress for abuses of religious rights and other human rights. For his activities, he has been under surveillance and questioned numerous times by the police.  His freedom of movement is also restricted.  

Dr. Li is a native of rural Hunan Province, Jiahe County. He received his undergraduate degree in 1991 from Hunan University Philosophy Department, master’s degree in political science from Beijing University in 1994, and Ph.D in law from Beijing University in 1997. From August 2003 to the end of 2004, Li provided legal assistance to thousands of farmers involved in land disputes in many provinces. In 2003, Li provided legal counsel to human rights advocate Chen Guangcheng in Linyi, Shandong Province. On December 14, 2004, when he was providing legal assistance to farmers in Fujian Province, Li was arrested by local police on suspicion of fraud. Police raided his Beijing home, confiscating his computer, among other possessions. After spending 37 days in detention, Li was released on bail on January 21, 2005. On February 9, 2005, Li took the case of Liu Jie, a farmer from Heilongjiang Province, suing the State Council for negligence involved in handling a request for administrative review of her claim that officials illegally confiscated her property.  

Zhu Jiuhu (朱久虎): Formerly a lawyer at the Beijing Jietong Law Firm, who was detained and then released on probation on September 19, 2005. In 2006, his case continued to be “on bail awaiting trial” and his civil liberties were accordingly curtailed. He is banned from practicing law. Zhu, 40, represented many victims of rights abuses in collective lawsuits.  He was the chief legal counsel of the Shaanxi private oil enterprise shareholders lawsuit against local government for causing loss of investment. On June 22, 2005, he was arrested by the Jingbian police in Shaanxi Province on charges of “inciting social unrest” and “unlawful assembly” for his legal work assisting his clients in this lawsuit. Under national and international pressure, mostly expressed through online public opinion, Zhu was released following a four-month detention on condition of a one-year probation and suspension of law practice.  

Zhou Litai (周立太): a lawyer specializing in labor law and migrants’ labor rights.  Mr. Zhou, 49, from rural Chongqing, formerly Sichuan Province, only had a second-grade primary school education.  He joined the army as a youth.  He taught himself law and got a license to practice law. On May 1996, Zhou headed to Shenzhen, the Special Economic Zone, where he took on work-related injury compensation cases, and then expanded his work to the Pearl River Delta region. He has provided representation in over 700 such cases to date, and has been involved in 2,000 plus other injury and salary disputes all over the country. He does not collect lawyer’s fees from his clients unless he wins the cases in court. Through a series of lawsuits, he set the precedent of compensation for prosthetic limbs in work injury cases in China, and made it a part of Guangzhou and Shenzhen’s legislation. He even set the record for the largest work injury compensation, which amounted to 1.58 million yuan. Zhou was selected as one of the ten most influential people by the Southern Daily in 2001. 

In 2002, the Shenzhen government suspended Zhou’s license to practice law in areas of labor rights. The Shenzhen Justice Bureau in the Longgang District in Shenzhen orders Mr. Zhou to immediately stop his “illegal” law practice. Zhou tried to challenge this order, but in the end, he was forced to return to Chongqing to continue working at his firm, Litai Law Firm. In Chongqing, he continued to take cases involving workers and farmers. In November 2005, Zhou’s firm was able to reopen in Shenzhen. In April 2007, Mr. Zhou was stopped by authorities from attending a conference on human rights lawyers and legal reform in Hong Kong. 

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