Annual Report 2012
The state of the world's human rights

Document - China: Dissidents detained since 1992: political trials and administrative sentences










TABLE OF CONTENTS





1.UNDERGROUND DISSIDENT GROUPS AND THE 1992 ARRESTS 2



2.DISSIDENTS AWAITING TRIAL IN BEIJING 4



3.DISSIDENTS FACING TRIAL IN VARIOUS PROVINCES 11



4.DISSIDENTS TRIED IN 1993 13



5.SENTENCES WITHOUT TRIAL: FU SHENQI, ZHANG XIANLIANG AND OTHER CASES 17



6.PHOTOGRAPHS 23



7.INDEX OF NAMES WITH CHINESE CHARACTERS 25








£CHINA

@Dissidents Detained Since 1992: Political Trials and Administrative Sentences



This document describes the cases of over 50 democracy supporters who have been detained in China in 1992 and 1993 for the peaceful exercise of fundamental human rights.


Some of them have been sentenced to terms of imprisonment after unfair trials or to terms of administrative detention imposed without trial. Others are now awaiting trial in Beijing and other cities.


Those awaiting trial and some of those already sentenced were secretly detained in 1992 during large-scale arrests of people suspected of having formed or joined underground dissident groups, or planned activities around 4 June 1992 to commemorate the third anniversary of the crackdown on the 1989 pro-democracy protests. Following their arrest, Amnesty International issued a series of appeals calling on the Chinese government to disclose information about their legal status and whereabouts and to release unconditionally all those who had not been charged with recognizably criminal offences in accordance with international human rights standards. The authorities have neither responded, nor made public any information about their arrest and detention.


Many of those detained in 1992 have remained in custody. They were illegally held without charge for several months and their family were denied information as to the charges against them for more than a year. They have been held incommunicado since their arrest and are still being denied access to their relatives.


At least 15 of those held in Beijing are known to have been jointly indicted1in late July 1993, together with one other man who was released on bail pending trial in November 1992. This was the largest group of prisoners of conscience to have been indicted together in many years. In September 1993, their relatives were notified to find lawyers for their trial2, which usually indicates that the trial is imminent. The trial, however, was postponed, reportedly due to international pressure and foreign policy considerations, including a visit to the United States of America (USA) by President Jiang Zemin in November 1993. According to unofficial sources, in October 1993, the court which was due to hear the cases returned the indictment to the prosecuting authorities, apparently because there was insufficient evidence for conviction. No new indictment has been issued as yet.


Amnesty International appealed again to the Chinese authorities about their cases in October 1993. It urged that, if the trials go ahead, the defendants be granted fair and open trials, with full facilities to defend themselves, and that independent observers be allowed to attend the hearings. It also urged the authorities to make public the names of and charges against all those to be tried, as well as the dates and places of the trials.


As mid-January 1994, however, the Chinese authorities still had not made public any information about those held or their legal status. Neither had the detainees' relatives been informed of any new charges against them. Should they eventually be tried, it is expected that the trial will be closed to the public, as is the practice in all political trials in China.


Amnesty International considers that those awaiting trial in Beijing and most of the other prisoners cited in this document are prisoners of conscience detained solely for the peaceful exercise of their right to freedom of expression or association, in violation of international human rights standards. It is calling again on the Chinese authorities to release them immediately and unconditionally.



1.UNDERGROUND DISSIDENT GROUPS AND THE 1992 ARRESTS

Many of the dissidents arrested in mid-1992 in Beijing and elsewhere were detained on suspicion of organising, joining or having connections with underground dissident groups formed in recent years in various places in China. Some of these groups started publicizing their existence and aims in late 1991 and early 1992, issuing public statements and leaflets calling for reforms in advance of 4 June 1992 - the third anniversary of the 1989 massacre in Beijing3.


During the spring of 1992, the authorities tried to put a stop to such activities by arresting scores of activists and suspected supporters of such groups. Some of those held were released without charge after the 4 June 1992 anniversary. Others however were kept in custody and are now facing trial. The dissident groups which publicized their existence included the following:






The Liberal Democratic Party of China


The Liberal Democratic Party of China (LDPC, Zhongguo Ziyou Minzhu Dang)4first became known through an appeal signed in its name which was posted in November 1991 at Beijing University and distributed to foreign journalists in Beijing. The appeal, entitled "Statement on the Question of Human Rights in China", was issued shortly after the government published a "White Paper on Human Rights in China" to defend its human rights record. The LDPC statement criticized the authorities for violating human rights and called for the release of all political prisoners, an end to political repression and the convening of a national assembly representative of different sectors of society and parties. Another statement in the name of the LDPC, also calling for the release of political prisoners, was circulated in March 1992, just before the opening session of the National People's Congress in Beijing.


The China Progressive Alliance


The China Progressive Alliance (CPA, Zhonghua Jinbu Tongmeng) was reportedly founded in mid-1991 by people who had participated in or supported the 1989 pro-democracy movement. In May 1992, members of the group reportedly held a meeting and adopted an 11-point programme which later circulated outside China. The programme stressed the need for a "radical transformation of the existing social, political and economic systems, and the setting up of a new society based on humanism, justice, freedom, democracy and solidarity". According to the programme, China was in a political, economic and moral crisis precipitated by totalitarianism and the one-party dictatorship. It dealt with political and economic issues in practical terms. It proposed a variety of solutions to economic problems, for example that a market economy be introduced; that a social security system be installed to defend minimum living standards; that the state's role in guiding economic activities be respected. It strove to fight without violence against the one-party dictatorship, but also aspired to cooperate with democratic progressive forces within the Chinese Communist Party and other groups, so as to achieve strength through unity in the long term.


The Free Labour Union of China


A Preparatory Committee of the Free Labour Union of China (FLUC, Zhongguo Ziyou Gonghui) is reported to have been set up in late 1991. In January 1992, leaflets publicizing the existence of the FLUC Preparatory Committee were distributed, encouraging workers to form free labour unions. After some of its members were secretly arrested in June 1992, the group sent a letter of appeal to the International Labour Organisation in Geneva, to publicise the grievances of workers in China. It documented the way in which workers were deprived of their rights to speech, assembly, strike and employment in China. It also spoke of the deterioration of workers rights since the start of the economic reforms in the late 1970s, including the lack of provisions to defend the rights of workers in the new private sector. It included a commitment to "building an economic and political system of justice and human rights".


The Social Democratic Party of China


The Social Democratic Party of China (SDPC, Zhongguo Shihui Minzhu Dang) is said to have been one of the largest underground dissident organizations founded in China after the suppression of the pro-democracy movement in 1989. It was reportedly founded in 1991 and had its base in Lanzhou, Gansu province, with local groups in several provinces and cities, including Beijing. It claimed to have over 100 members, including students, workers, intellectuals and government cadres, most of whom had participated in the 1989 democracy movement. The SPDC publicised its existence in April 1992, while the National People's Congress (NPC) was meeting in Beijing, by distributing a manifesto setting up its political programme. It called on the NPC to implement democratic reforms and urged the release of political prisoners and an end to the one-party dictatorship. The group expressed support for all forms of advances in democratic reforms and stated its wish to join forces with other groups and individuals committed to democratization, including from within the Chinese Communist Party. Arrests of suspected members of the group immediately followed. By May 1992, some 50 people had reportedly been apprehended in various places in China, 10 of whom have been identified. For months after their arrest, their relatives were denied information about their detention.



2.DISSIDENTS AWAITING TRIAL IN BEIJING


At least 16 people detained in 1992 and charged with "counter-revolutionary" offences are awaiting trial in Beijing. A joint indictment against the 16 men was issued on 29 July 1993 by the Beijing People's Procuratorate. One of them was released on bail pending trial in late November 1992, apparently for medical reasons. The 15 others have been detained since mid-1992 and are now reported to be held in the Banbuqiao Detention Centre in Beijing (Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau Detention Centre). They have been denied family visits since their arrest.


According to unofficial sources, in October 1993 the Beijing Intermediate People's Court returned the indictment to the Beijing People's Procuratorate (procuracy), apparently because the court believed there was not enough evidence for conviction5. In such cases, the procuracy usually is required to carry out supplementary investigation and provide further evidence for the case to be brought to trial. According to the law, the supplementary investigation should be completed within one month. This time period, however, has long expired and the defendants' relatives have still not heard what the outcome of this process is and whether the trial will or not take place. The procuracy's review could possibly result in the releases of some or all of the detainees or in a new indictment being issued.


According to the 29 July 1993 indictment, a copy of which has reached Amnesty International, ten of the defendants were charged with either "organizing and leading" or "taking part" in "counter-revolutionary groups" and seven among them were additionally charged with "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement". The other six defendants were charged only with "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement". The ten charged with involvement in "counter-revolutionary groups" were accused of having formed or taken part in three of the dissident groups mentioned above, namely the Liberal Democratic Party of China, the Preparatory Committee of the Free Labour Union of China and the China Progressive Alliance. Some of them were accused of having been involved in the three groups.


While it gives detailed information about the formation of the three groups and the activities of its alleged members, the indictment provides no evidence to show that the groups' aim was to overthrow the government or the Chinese Communist Party. According to Chinese law, it is necessary in "counter-revolutionary" cases to prove that the defendants had such "counter-revolutionary" purposes. The lack of such evidence may have been one of the reasons for the postponement of the trial in October 1993.


The indictment also shows that the defendants were illegally detained for four to six months before they were formally arrested6under the Criminal Law. According to the indictment, they were "arrested" (charged) between late September 1992 and late November 1992, though most of them are known to have been in police custody since May or June 1992. Thus they were detained without charge for several months before being formally arrested, in violation of the procedures for arrest and detention prescribed in China's Criminal Procedure Law. According to the law, the maximum permitted time for detaining a suspect before he or she is either formally arrested or released is 10 days7.


The sixteen men listed as defendants in the Beijing People's Procuratorate's 29 July 1993 indictment are:


Hu Shigen (also known as Hu Shenglun), 37, a lecturer at the Beijing Foreign Languages Institute. He was detained on 28 May 1992, along with Gao Yuxiang (see below). Pro-democracy leaflets were reportedly found in their possession and on 6 June 1992 their homes were searched by police officers of the Beijing Public Security Bureau and items taken away. No formal arrest, detention or search warrants were issued at the time. Hu Shigen, who is married and has one child, has been held in incommunicado detention since his arrest.


According to the July 1993 indictment, Hu Shigen was formally arrested on 27 September 1992. He was accused of having established the Liberal Democratic Party of China (LDPC) together with Wang Guoqi (see below) in January 1991, of recruiting members into the party and drafting the LDPC "political principles" and other documents such as the "Statement on the Question of Human Rights in China" which was issued in November 1991 in the name of the LDPC. He was also accused of having planned with others, in December 1991, the establishment of the Preparatory Committee of the Free Labour Union of China (FLUC), and of drafting documents about it and the issue of free trade unions. According to the indictment, he also "plotted" with others to distributed "counter-revolutionary" leaflets in various cities prior to 4 June 1992 and also had links with the China Progressive Alliance (see below, Kang Yuchun's case). He was charged with "organizing and leading a counter-revolutionary group" and "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement".


Kang Yuchun, 28, a doctor at Beijing's Andingmen Hospital, was detained on or around 29 May 1992. At the time, his home was searched and pro-democracy leaflets were reportedly confiscated. According to unconfirmed reports, Kang Yuchun was ill-treated during interrogation shortly after being taken in custody. His parents have been denied access to him since his arrest. The only information they received after his arrest was from officials at the hospital where Kang worked who said that the State Security Bureau was responsible for his detention and that "it was best for them not to pursue the matter". By late October 1993, they had still not been officially notified of the reason for their son's detention or the place where he was being held.


According to the July 1993 indictment, Kang Yuchun was formally arrested on 27 September 1992. He was accused of having formed the China Progressive Alliance (CPA) in June 1991, together with Lu Zhigang, An Ning, Wang Jianping, Lu Mingxia and others, and of taking part in the drafting of various CPA's organisational documents. He was also accused of having gone to Zhengzhou (Henan province) in January 1992 to contact An Ning and others there and enquire about the progress of An Ning's job in organising the "Henan Work Committee of the CPA" in Zhengzhou. According to the indictment, Kang Yuchun also had contacts with Hu Shigen (see above) and Liu Jingsheng (see below), was recruited by them into the LDPC, and also recruited them into the CPA. Kang Yuchun was charged with "organizing and leading a counter-revolutionary group" and "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement".


Wang Guoqi, 30, unemployed, formerly a printing worker at the Beijing Foreign Languages Institute. He was reportedly detained on 22 June 1992 at his wife's home. At the time, in contrast with other arrests of dissidents, the police reportedly produced either a detention or search warrant. Wang Guoqi had spent two years in jail from June 1989 till mid-1991 for taking part in the 1989 democracy movement. He was further detained twice for short periods before his latest arrest, including for taking part in the funeral of a dissident in December 1991. He had been unemployed since his release from prison in mid-1991. Wang is divorced and has a five year old daughter.


According to the July 1993 indictment, Wang Guoqi was formally arrested on 27 September 1992. He was accused of having established the LDPC together with Hu Shigen and of recruiting members into it. He was charged with "organising and leading a counter-revolutionary group".


Lu Zhigang, 24, a law student at Beijing University, originally from Shanghai. He is reported to have been detained some time around 4 June 1992. According to the July 1993 indictment, he was formally arrested on 27 September 1992. He was accused of having formed the CPA together with Kang Yuchun and others, and of being involved in the production of the CPA magazine, "Freedom Forum", and of documents concerning the FLUC Preparatory Committee. He also allegedly took part in plans to distribute pro-democracy leaflets prior to 4 June 1992, "went to Shenzhen for this purpose and secretly contacted people from abroad" from whom he allegedly received financial support. He was charged with "organizing and leading a counter-revolutionary group" and "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement".


Liu Jingsheng, 39, a worker at the Tongyi Chemical Plant in Tong county, outside Beijing. He was detained on 1 June 1992. A veteran pro-democracy campaigner, Liu Jingsheng had taken part in the "Democracy Wall" movement of the late 1970s and co-edited the dissident journal Explorations with Wei Jingsheng, who was arrested in 1979 and subsequently spent fourteen and a half years in prison. Liu Jingsheng was also detained in 1979 but released after a few months. At the time of his arrest in June 1992, pro-democracy leaflets were reportedly seized at his home by police. Liu Jingsheng is married and has a 10-year-old daughter.


According to the July 1993 indictment, Liu Jingsheng was formally arrested on 27 September 1992. He was accused of having had a leading role in the LDPC and in the drafting and dissemination of documents concerning the Preparatory Committee of the FLUC. He was also alleged to have "plotted", together with Hu Shigen (see above) and Gao Yuxiang (see below), the distribution of pro-democracy leaflets around 4 June 1992. He allegedly wrote some of the leaflets, printed more than 6000 copies of them and prepared with others to distribute them. He was charged with "organizing and leading a counter-revolutionary group" and "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement".


Gao Yuxiang, 36, a private entrepreneur at the Hongqiao market of Xuanwu District in Beijing. He is reported to have been detained on 28 May 1992 along with Hu Shigen. They reportedly had pro-democracy leaflets in their possession. Their homes were searched on 6 June 1992 by police officers and items confiscated but no formal arrest, detention or search warrants were issued. Gao Yuxiang is married and has a four year old son. His family has been denied access to him since his arrest.


According to the July 1993 indictment, Gao Yuxiang was formally arrested on 27 September 1992. He was accused of having been a member of the LDPC and having joined in activities related to the FLUC Preparatory Committee. According to the indictment, he was also involved in planning with others the distribution of pro-democracy leaflets around 4 June 1992. He was charged with "actively taking part in a counter-revolutionary group" and "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement".


Wang Tiancheng, 29, a law lecturer at Beijing University Law Department. He was reportedly detained on 2 November 1992 and, according to unconfirmed reports, several students from the Law Department were also detained at around the same time. Wang Tiancheng's detention was not officially acknowledged. Two weeks after his arrest, officials at Beijing University said that they had no information on his case8, though foreign press reports indicated he had been arrested for suspected links with underground dissident groups9. In his academic work, Wang Tiancheng had been critical of the system of administrative law in China. His views about the relations between human rights, the rule of law and executive power were expressed in an article entitled "Those who Rule are Ruled by Law: Administrative Law and Human Rights", which was published in 1992 in his college journal Zhong-Wai Faxue (Peking University Law Journal), of which he edited some issues.


According to the July 1993 indictment, Wang Tiancheng was formally arrested on 14 December 1992. He was accused of having been a member of the LDPC, of involvement in the drafting of material concerning the FLUC Preparatory Committee and of leaflets for distribution around 4 June 1992. According to the indictment, the leaflets included some entitled "The Heroic Souls of 4 June Exist Eternally" and "Letter to the Whole Citizenry by the United Democratic League", which were written by Liu Jingsheng, Chen Wei and Wang Tiancheng "respectively" and subsequently printed in more than 6000 copies. Wang Tiancheng was charged with "actively taking part in a counter-revolutionary group" and "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement".


Wang Peizhong, 24, a graduate student at the Oil Prospecting and Exploration Research Institute in Beijing, originally from Shanxi province. He was detained some time around 4 June 1992. According to the July 1993 indictment, he was formally arrested on 27 September 1992. He was accused of having joined the CPA, of helping prepare and mailing more than 50 copies of the group's journal "Freedom Forum", and of typing the text of leaflets written by others for distribution around 4 June 1992. He was charged with "actively taking part in a counter-revolutionary group" and "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement".


Chen Qinglin, 24, originally from Inner Mongolia, a cadre at the Hangu Saltworks Meteorological Station in Tianjin city. He was reportedly detained some time between late May and 7 June 1992. Formerly a student in Beijing, he had been a member of the Beijing Students Autonomous Federation during the 1989 pro-democracy movement.


According to the July 1993 indictment, he was formally arrested on 27 September 1992. He was accused of having joined the LDPC and, under Hu Shigen's direction, of having gone to Xinjiang at an undisclosed time in order to "develop the organisation". He was charged with "actively taking part in a counter-revolutionary group".


Li Quanli (previously named as Li Jinli), 42, a worker at the Beijing Car Factory's Electric Appliance Branch. He is believed to have been detained in June 1992 but was bailed a few months later. The July 1993 indictment does not specify the date at which he was formally arrested, but indicates he was "released on bail pending trial" on 24 November 1992. He was accused of having joined the LDPC and been involved in the planning of the FLUC Preparatory Committee. He was charged with "actively taking part in a counter-revolutionary group".


Chen Wei, 24, unemployed, a former student of the Beijing Technology Institute, originally from Sichuan province. He was detained at the end of May 1992. He had been detained several times before: in 1989 he was jailed for his involvement in the pro-democracy movement and released in January 1991; he was detained again in June 1991 for a brief period before the 4 June anniversary of the 1989 crackdown; and again for a brief period in December 1991 for attending the funeral of Wen Jie, a dissident who had been jailed for 18 months after June 1989 and became seriously ill with cancer while in prison.


According to the July 1993 indictment, Chen Wei was formally arrested on 27 September 1992. He was accused of having been involved, together with Liu Jingsheng and Wang Tiancheng, in drafting some pro-democracy leaflets before 4 June 1992 and in plans to distribute them. He was charged with "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement".


Zhang Chunzhu, 41, unemployed, originally from Shandong province, he was living in Beijing before his arrest. According to the July 1993 indictment he had previously been jailed for five years after being convicted of theft in 1972. The date at which he was detained is not known but, according to the indictment, he was formally arrested on 27 September 1992. He was accused of having helped to distribute in Beijing the "Statement on the Question of Human rights in China" issued by the LDPC in November 1991 (see page ). He was charged with "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement".


Rui Chaohuai, 23, a worker at the Beijing Construction Materials and Machinery Factory, originally from Tianjin city. The date at which he was detained is not known, but according to the July 1993 indictment, he was formally arrested on 30 November 1992. He was accused of having helped to "hide" pro-democracy leaflets prepared by others for distribution prior to 4 June 1992. He was charged with "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement".


Xing Hongwei, 25, a cadre at Chengdu's Jianjiang coal mine in Sichuan province, originally from Shaanxi province. The exact date at which he was detained is not known, but information in the July 1993 indictment indicates this was either late May or early June 1992. According to the indictment, he was formally arrested on 27 September 1992. He was accused of having been involved in plans to distribute pro-democracy leaflets prior to 4 June 1992. According to the indictment, on 28 May 1992, he took 700 copies of leaflets written by others and "was caught when he was about to take them back to Chengdu (Sichuan province) for distribution and mailing". He was charged with "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement".


Xu Dongling, 37, a worker at the Dongbei Paper Mill in the Haidian district of Beijing. The date at which he was detained is not known, but according to the July 1993 indictment, he was formally arrested on 27 September 1992. He was accused of helping Liu Jingsheng and others to address more than 6000 envelopes for the distribution of pro-democracy leaflets prior to 4 June 1992 and of helping to move the envelopes and leaflets to the house of Gao Yuxiang (see above). He was charged with "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement".


Zhang Guojun (previously named as Li Guojun), 31, a restaurant owner in the Fengtai district of Beijing, originally from Liaoning province. The exact date at which he was detained is not known, though it is believed to be in early June 1992. According to the July 1993 indictment, he was formally arrested on 27 September 1992. He was accused of having helped to address some 6000 envelopes for the distribution of pro-democracy leaflets prior to 4 June 1992. The leaflets were allegedly printed at his restaurant. He was charged with "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement".


Three other people, who are mentioned in the July 1993 indictment against the 16 people named above, may also go on trial separately on charges of involvement in "counter-revolutionary groups". According to the indictment, the three were founding members of the China Progressive Alliance. One of them, An Ning, is believed to be held in Henan province (see page ). The other two are Wang Jianping, about whom little is known, and Lu Mingxia, a former student at Beijing's People's University who had been involved in the 1989 pro-democracy movement. The indictment states that their "cases are being handled separately", indicating that there may be other defendants involved and/or that they may be tried outside Beijing.


Several other people were also arrested in Beijing around 4 June 1992, reportedly for their connection with dissident groups, but little has been heard about them since then and it is not known whether they are still being held and awaiting trial. They included Guo Shaoyan, a postgraduate student of Beijing University, Li Jie, a student of Beijing University, Wang Qishan, an employee of the Institute of Geology in Beijing, and Wang Xiaodong, a former student of the Beijing Institute of Technology.



3.DISSIDENTS FACING TRIAL IN VARIOUS PROVINCES


Apart from those held in Beijing, dozens of democracy activists suspected of having connections with underground dissident organizations were also arrested in 1992 in various provinces, including Henan, Gansu, Anhui and Hunan provinces. There have been little news about those held since then, though it is believed that at least some of them will soon face trial.


Several people may go on trial in Zhengzhou, the provincial capital of Henan, in connection with the prosecution of members of dissident groups in Beijing. At least two are known to have been detained in 1992. They are An Ning, a former student at Beijing University who had returned to Zhengzhou after graduation and was jailed previously for taking part in the 1989 pro-democracy movement; and Meng Zhongwei, a chemistry student from Zhengzhou University and a friend of An Ning.


Both were detained in September 1992, apparently in connection with the return visit to China in August 1992 of exiled dissident Shen Tong, who had been living in exile in the USA since 1989. In September 1992, the Chinese authorities detained Shen Tong for attempting to set up an "illegal organization" after his return to China, though due to international publicity he was released shortly after and allowed to leave the country. Over a dozen people suspected of having had contacts with Shen Tong were arrested in various places in China between September and November 1992, including An Ning and Meng Zhongwei. There has been no news about Meng Zhongwei since then and it is not known whether his case is related to that of An Ning.


An Ning is cited in the indictment against the 16 people awaiting trial in Beijing (see page ). According to the indictment, An Ning was a leading member of the China Progressive Alliance (CPA, see page ) and was involved in drafting some of the CPA documents after the group was formed in Beijing in June 1991. The indictment indicates that he was in Zhengzhou in January 1992. At that time he allegedly was in charge of organizing a "Henan Working Committee of the CPA" and was visited in Zhengzhou by Kang Yuchun (see page ) and others. The indictment states that An Ning's case would be "dealt with separately" from those detained in Beijing, indicating that he may be prosecuted in Zhengzhou, possibly with other people accused of joining the CPA there.

At least ten people were arrested in April or May 1992, most of then in Lanzhou, Gansu province, on suspicion of involvement in a dissident group, the Social Democratic Party of China (SDPC, see page ), whose base was in Lanzhou. According to unconfirmed reports, as many as 50 members of the group were arrested in various places in China at the time, though only ten have been identified. Eight of those known to have been arrested were held in Gansu province, but the place where the other two are held is not known.


The eight held in Gansu included five students from Lanzhou University of whom three, Ding Mao, Liu Baiyu and Xing Shimin, were philosophy students; one, Liu Wensheng, was a history student and one, Lu Yanghua, was a graduate student in physics. They were all in their mid-20s and most had been involved in the 1989 pro-democracy movement, as a result of which at least two of them were jailed. Ding Mao was detained for nine months after June 1989. Liu Baiyu, who had been on a "wanted" list issued by the authorities in September 1989, was held for 19 months and was subsequently expelled from the university. Liu Wensheng was also reportedly on a "wanted" list after June 1989 but escaped arrest until May 1992.


The three other men arrested in Gansu province in spring 1992 are Gao Changyun, a teacher at Lanzhou University Administration Department; Zhang Jian, a staff worker at the Gansu Provincial Library; and Cao Jianyu, an employee at the Gansu Public Relations Association.


Two other men were reportedly arrested at the same time for their suspected links with the SDPC, but the place where they were held is not known. They are Xu Zhendong, a 25 year old cadre from the Tianshan Boiler Plant in Urumqi, Xinjiang Autonomous Region, and Lu Yalin, a 24 year-old teacher at the Yancheng City School of Light Industry in Jiangsu Province.


At least five people, in Anhui province, were reported to have been arrested in 1992 for suspected dissident activities. According to press reports, some of them were released in 1993, though the releases have not been confirmed and it is not clear who those freed are. Those arrested in 1992 included: Yu Liangqing, a government cadre from Anhui Province arrested around 4 June 1992; Huang Jinwan, a company manager arrested in May or June 1992 (he may be the same person as Huang Xiuming, a 28-year-old man who according to some sources was arrested on 9 May 1992); Tian Yang, arrested in April 1992 in Hefei; Ma Lianggang, a student in Hefei arrested in April 1992, and Shen Liangqing, an employee at the Hefei People's Procuratorate who was also arrested in April 1992. Described as a "key member" of the Hefei Independent Students Union in 1989, Ma Lianggang had been jailed previously in 1989. According to unconfirmed reports, Ma Lianggang and Huang Jinwan are among those who have been freed.


4.DISSIDENTS TRIED IN 1993


Liao Jia'an, a 24 year-old postgraduate student from Beijing's People's University, was sentenced by a Beijing court in August 1993 to three year's imprisonment on charges of "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda"10.


Liao Jia'an, who worked part-time at a bookstore in Beijing before his arrest, was detained by police on 8 June 1992 together with Wang Shengli, a postgraduate student from People's University Philosophy Department. Both were illegally detained without charge for nearly three months for "shelter and investigation" - a form of administrative detention - before they were formally arrested and charged under the Criminal Law. They were accused of having written "reactionary" leaflets and distributed about 1,000 copies of the leaflets at the Beijing University campus in May 1991. The leaflets criticized the 1989 crackdown on the pro-democracy movement and called for commemoration of those killed on 4 June 1989. They were also accused of hanging a banner with the slogan "We Have Not Forgotten 4 June" out of a window on the University campus. An indictment against both was issued in November 1992. The charges against Wang Shengli were later dropped and he was released in April 1993, reportedly for alerting prison officials to an escape plan by prisoners who had tried to kill him.


According to unofficial sources, Liao Jia'an was initially due to be tried in March 1993, but the trial did not take place until 19 June 1993, though the sentence was not announced at the time. After he was indicted, his relatives reportedly found it difficult to find a lawyer to defend him as law firms in Beijing had reportedly been warned by the Beijing judicial authorities not to serve as his defence counsel11. At the time of his trial in June, his relatives were reportedly not informed in advance of the trial and were unable to come to Beijing to attend the hearing12. Liao Jia'an is said to have contracted hepatitis in prison but to have received no medical treatment for it.


Zhang Minpeng, a 38 year-old worker and democracy activist from Wuhan, in central Hubei province, was sentenced in August 1993 to five years' imprisonment and an additional two years' deprivation of political rights for "organizing a counter-revolutionary group"13. Zhang Minpeng had previously been jailed for three years during the early 1980s for publishing an unofficial magazine. In July 1992, he was taken in police custody and illegally detained without charge for over eight months for "shelter and investigation" before he was formally arrested and charged under the Criminal Law.

At his trial before the Wuhan Intermediate People's Court, Zhang Minpeng was accused of having formed in 1991 a political group, the Republican Party, which aimed to establish a multiparty system in China. According to the court verdict against him, Zhang had written a manifesto for the party, recruited members into it and divided tasks among them. During one of the group's meetings, in March 1992, he had read an article he had written, entitled "The Fate of the Intellectuals", in which he attacked the socialist system, the verdict said. According to the verdict, his lawyer argued before the court that, although Zhang had formed this group, there was no evidence to show that his actions and aims were to overthrow the dictatorship of the proletariat and socialist system; but the court disagreed, saying Zhang had "proven that he had counter-revolutionary goals". Thirteen other people were cited in the verdict as having been involved in the group. They are Chen Yong, Liu Bangming, Zhang Weidong, Wang Yangli, Zhang Hanjiang, Hu Gang, Liu Gui, Wu Yingling, Lu Zhonghua, Liu Chongyun, Wang Yuqing, Zeng Dazhao and Ding Hancong. According to the court verdict against Zhang, their cases were being "handled" separately, indicating that they might face trial on similar charges. No further information has become available as yet about their cases.


Yu Zhuo, a 24 year-old computer science student from Wuhan, Hubei province, was secretly tried in Wuhan in October 1993 and sentenced to two years' imprisonment for putting up posters on the campus of his college in 1992 to commemorate the 4 June 1989 crackdown on the pro-democracy movement.


Yu Zhuo was arrested by police in September 1992 and illegally detained without charge for nine months for "shelter and investigation", in violation of the provisions against arbitrary arrest and detention in the Chinese Constitution and Criminal Procedure Law. In early May 1993, Yu Zhuo appealed to the Wuhan Public Security Bureau (PSB) against the administrative detention order imposed on him, but the PSB reportedly refused to pass on his appeal to the relevant district court. The court itself apparently refused to receive a similar complaint by Yu Zhuo's father14.


Yu Zhuo was eventually charged on 27 May 1993 with carrying out "counter-revolutionary propaganda and agitation" and indicted on 5 July 1993. His parents, who had appealed many times to the authorities against his illegal detention, were not formally notified of the charges against him and continued to be denied access to him. According to reports circulating in early July 1993, Yu Zhuo was due to be tried around 20 July and a sentence of four years' imprisonment had already been decided upon by the authorities before the trial15. However, his trial was postponed and the pre-determined sentence appears to have been reviewed, apparently due to international appeals about his case. His parents were not notified of his trial. On 11 October 1993, they learned accidentally that Yu Zhuo had just been tried in secret and sentenced to two years' imprisonment16.


Yao Kaiwen, a 53 year-old former high school teacher, went on trial in Shanghai on 24 September 1993 together with Gao Xiaoliang, a 26 year-old former worker and member of the banned Shanghai Workers Autonomous Federation (SWAF, formed in May 1989). They were accused of forming a "counter-revolutionary" group, the China Branch of the Democratic Front. The verdict was pronounced three months later by the Shanghai Intermediate People's Court. Yao Kaiwen was sentenced to ten years' imprisonment and deprivation of political rights for an additional three years. Gao Xiaoliang was sentenced to nine years' imprisonment plus two years' deprivation of political rights.


Both men were arrested in Shanghai in May 1993 together with Han Lifa, a mechanic aged about 30 and former member of the banned SWAF, and Yao Tiansheng, a factory worker in his mid-20s. According to unofficial sources, the four men were planning activities around 4 June 1993 to commemorate the fourth anniversary of the 1989 crackdown on the pro-democracy movement. In March 1993, some of them had signed a petition calling for the release of two people17who had been arbitrarily detained by the Shanghai police earlier that month. On 5 June 1993, Yao Kaiwen, Gao Xiaoliang, Han Lifa and Yao Tiansheng were reportedly charged with forming a "counter-revolutionary" group by the Shanghai People's Procuratorate (procuracy)18.


Two of them, Han Lifa and Yao Tiansheng, were released from police custody on 4 September 1993, though apparently they were not cleared of the charges against them. According to press reports, they were told before their release by the Shanghai procuracy that they would not be prosecuted because their offence was relatively light and they had "behaved well" in detention19. Three days after their release, they reportedly decided to file an "administrative appeal" demanding that the authorities publicly declare their innocence. However, according to the 23 December verdict against Yao Kaiwen and Gao Xiaoliang, the charge against Yao Tiansheng appears to have been maintained (see below).


Yao Kaiwen and Gao Xiaoliang were kept in police custody. On 24 September 1993, they were brought to a secret trial from which their relatives were barred, but no verdict was pronounced at the time. It was expected that the verdict would be pronounced one month later. However, no announcement was made until 23 December, when they were sentenced by the Shanghai Intermediate People's Court to ten and nine years' imprisonment respectively. According to press reports, Yao Kaiwen and Gao Xiaoliang were convicted of "organising and leading a counter-revolutionary group" with the alleged aim of overthrowing the "dictatorial rule of the communist regime"20. The court verdict also cited Yao Tiansheng as a "core organiser" of the group and said that his case was being "dealt with separately". This indicates that he may also be tried, though he is reportedly still free.


According to press reports, the court verdict stated that Yao Kaiwen had drafted a 10-point plan of action allegedly indicating that the group was ready to take both peaceful and violent actions to achieve their aim. They had allegedly discussed plans to organise demonstrations, form workers' brigades, occupy radio and television stations, and detain local party and government leaders. They had also reportedly planned to publish a journal called "Free China".


There appears to have been little, if any, evidence to substantiate the accusations against them. According to unofficial sources, there is no evidence that the group ever had more than four or five active members; their alleged discussions on the possibility of using violence, even if true, had remained purely theoretical and they had never put their ideas into action21. The information available so far on their case suggests that they may be prisoners of conscience held for the peaceful exercise of their right to freedom of association. Furthermore, they have received severe sentences after an unfair trial without any possibility to properly defend themselves against the accusations.


Yao Kaiwen and Gao Xiaoliang had been detained previously for one or two years22of "re-education through labour" - Gao Xiaoliang for his involvement in the SWAF during the 1989 pro-democracy movement, and Yao Kaiwen for trying to flee the country following the 4 June 1989 crackdown. Their previous "offences" were apparently a factor in the severe sentences passed on them on 23 December 1993. Until their trial, they were held at the Shanghai No.1 Detention Centre, but it is expected that they will be transferred to a prison or labour camp following the sentencing.


Other people were tried and sentenced on political grounds in 1993, including several journalists and officials accused of providing or selling alleged "state secrets" to foreigners23.


Information also came to light about others tried in 1992 whose cases had not been previously reported. They included three men arrested in Shanghai in April 1992 who were convicted in July 1992 by a Shanghai court of forming a "counter-revolutionary" group, the "China Alliance Association". The three are Zhou Yuan, a 28 year-old technician who received a five-year sentence, Liu Kai, a 22 year-old waiter at a hotel in Shanghai, who was sentenced to two years' imprisonment, and Tang Weihua, who received a one-year sentence and has now been freed. Five other members of the group were reportedly detained together with them but were not prosecuted. According to unofficial sources, members of the group advocated democracy and had been holding a few discussion meetings in their homes but had taken no action to promote their views. Zhou Yuan is reported to be serving his five-year sentence at Shanghai Municipal Prison (Shanghai Prison No.1, known as Tilanqiao) where he works making gloves. He was reportedly once denied a monthly family visit for failing to fulfil the required monthly production target and threatened with such further sanctions if work quotas were not fulfilled in future24.


Others dissidents reportedly sentenced in 1993 include Xiao Delong, a 45 year-old worker and former member of the banned Beijing Workers Autonomous Federation (BWAF), who, according to Asia Watch, received a three-year term in early 1993 for his participation in the BWAF after escaping arrest for several years. He was reportedly arrested in September 1992, having been in hiding since his name appeared on a government's wanted list in August 198925, but few details are available about his case.


5.SENTENCES WITHOUT TRIAL:

FU SHENQI, ZHANG XIANLIANG AND OTHER CASES


A number of dissidents were also sentenced in 1993 to terms of "re-education through labour", an administrative punishment imposed without any judicial process which involves detention for up to three years, usually in a labour camp26. In contrast to sentences of imprisonment which are imposed after trial by a court, sentences of "re-education through labour" are imposed by administrative committees composed of representatives from the public security (police), civil affairs and labour departments of the local governments of cities and provinces. In practice it is often imposed by the police alone. This and other forms of administrative detention are often used by the police or the political authorities as a convenient means of avoiding the safeguards of the criminal justice system.


Under a law which came into force in October 1990, those who receive such administrative sentences can present appeals for review of the sentence, first to an administrative body, then to a court. Such reviews, however, are no substitute for trial and the sentences are not suspended during the process of review. Furthermore, in political cases, the review is a mere formality.


The case of Fu Shenqi, which is described below, attests of the failure of the review procedure to compensate for the arbitrariness which characterizes the imposition of this punishment. His and other cases also show how administrative detention is used in China to suppress dissent and jail people on the basis of vague accusations which could not constitute charges under the Criminal Law.


Fu Shenqi, a 39-year-old veteran pro-democracy campaigner who had been imprisoned twice before, was arrested in Shanghai on 26 June 1993. He had last been released from jail in February 1993, having spent a total of seven and a half years in prison since his first arrest in 1981. Fu Shenqi is married and has a son aged four and a half.


According to unofficial sources, a reason for his arrest was to prevent a reunion of several veteran democracy campaigners, including Fu Shenqi, in Qingdao city, Shandong province, in mid-July 1993. Those apparently planning to attend had been imprisoned during the 1980s for taking part in the "Democracy Wall" movement of the late 1970s and had planned to meet in July in Qingdao together with their families. Fu Shenqi's arrest took place just after he bought train tickets to Qingdao.


On 4 July 1993, barely eight days after his arrest, Fu Shenqi was sentenced without trial to three years of "re-education through labour". His wife was informed of the sentence by police on 10 July, but was not told where her husband was being detained and was denied permission to visit him. She only received formal notification of the sentence on 21 August 1993. Fu Shenqi was accused of having "incited trouble" for "planning" with others to draw public attention to the detention of two dissidents in Shanghai, including Wang Miaogen, who was confined to a mental hospital after being arrested by police in Shanghai in May 199327.


Fu Shenqi was first imprisoned in 1981 for his publishing activities during the Democracy Wall movement and contacts with other pro-democracy activists. Following his release from jail in 1986, he set up a private book stall in Shanghai and, together with others, started publishing a review, Fuxing, which included articles about political and human rights issues. This led to his second arrest in May 1991. After 21 months in detention, he was convicted by a Shanghai court in February 1993 of "carrying out counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement" and sentenced to two years' deprivation of political rights. Though he was released from prison, the sentence of deprivation of political rights was to take effect immediately and was still in force at the time of his re-arrest in June 1993.


The "Decision on Re-education Through Labour", issued against him on 4 July 1993 by the Shanghai Municipal Re-education Through Labour Management Committee, states that Fu Shenqi is sentenced for his "behaviour of inciting trouble". The decision uses the term "xingwei" (behaviour), rather than crime. Indeed what Fu Shenqi is accused of would not amount to a crime had he been prosecuted under the Chinese Criminal law.


According to the Decision, in May 1993 Fu Shenqi had "schemed" with dissident Zhang Xianliang (see page ) and others to raise the case of Wang Miaogen with the press and the police, and had also "revised" a letter of appeal drafted by Zhang Xianliang about Wang. The Decision further states that, when Zhang Xianliang was himself detained by police on 7 June 1993, Fu Shenqi was involved in "planning" a public protest against it. The protest was a hunger strike staged by four activists outside the Shanghai city hall shortly after Zhang's arrest. The four activists later signed a joint statement denying that Fu Shenqi had any part in their hunger strike. They were however prevented from testifying in his favour when his case was reviewed by a court in November 1993 (see below).


No other accusations or proof of Fu Shenqi's so-called "illegal" activities are cited in the Decision. It specifies that his sentence will run from 27 June 1993 to 16 June 1996 and that he can submit an application for review of the decision within 15 days of receiving it.


Fu Shenqi, who was then held by the Nanshiqu branch of the Shanghai Public Security Bureau, decided to appeal for review of the sentence. On 6 July, he reportedly requested permission to write his appeal from the police officer in charge and was slapped by him in the face half a dozen times as a result. He went on hunger strike for several days in protest, but was only allowed to submit an application for review on 23 July.


On 28 July 1993, Fu Shenqi was secretly transferred to the Xiaming re-education through labour farm in Dafeng county, Jiangsu province. His wife, Li Liping, was not informed of his transfer and was denied access to him until mid-September 1993, when she was allowed to see him for the first time since his arrest. At the farm Fu Shenqi was reportedly denied permission to write letters and forbidden to talk to other prisoners under threat of punishment. He suffers from kidney and heart trouble and his health has apparently declined since his arrest. Food rations at the farm are reportedly insufficient but inmates have to fulfil high work quotas. Whereas family visits are usually allowed once a month, Fu Shenqi is only allowed family visits once every three months. On 20 September, shortly after her first visit to the farm, Li Liping was detained by police for 23 hours, apparently as a warning for talking to foreign journalists about her husband's situation.


On 12 November 1993, the Huangpu district court of Shanghai held a hearing in the Dafeng county farm, where Fu Shenqi was held, to hear his appeal. According to information received by Amnesty International, Fu Shenqi, his wife and two lawyers hired by them attended the hearing, as well as over 30 other people who were all police or Labour Bureau officials. Some witnesses who had come to testify in Fu's favour were not allowed in court. Fu Shenqi was able to speak and stated that he was not guilty and that the police had fabricated false evidence against him. His lawyers complained that they had been denied access to filed documents on Fu's re-education through labour conviction and said they had evidence to prove that Fu was not guilty. One of the lawyers was allowed to read some of the defence testimony, but was interrupted by the judge before he could present witnesses' testimony. His repeated requests later on to present further testimony were apparently ignored by the judge. The total time given for the lawyer's presentation was some ten minutes. The hearing ended without the court making any decision on the appeal.


On 28 December 1993, the court held another hearing to announce its decision: Fu Shenqi's appeal was rejected. Neither Fu Shenqi nor his wife were allowed to attend this hearing and Fu's wife was detained for "contempt of court" when she protested that the court had violated its own regulations. She was reportedly held for 15 days at the Huangpu district detention centre before being released.

Zhang Xianliang, 48, a veteran pro-democracy campaigner in Shanghai who was previously jailed for five years, was arrested in early June 1993 and sentenced without trial two months later to three years of "re-education through labour" for "inciting trouble". In late May and early June, Zhang Xianliang had given interviews to foreign journalists about the arrests of dissidents in Shanghai over the previous weeks, including Wang Miaogen, a labour activist who was confined to a mental hospital by police after his arrest28. Zhang was also reportedly planning to hold a private commemoration of the 4 June 1989 massacre together with a few friends. On 3 June 1993 he was detained for 24 hours by the Shanghai police, apparently to prevent him hosting this gathering, then was detained again on 5 June 1993. During the following days, the police reportedly said that he was "on bail pending judicial process" and had been placed under "domestic surveillance", but they did not disclose where or why he was being held. Four dissidents who staged a hunger strike on 7 June to protest against Zhang's detention were themselves detained by police for 24 hours. Zhang Xianliang did not return home and his wife continued for weeks to be denied information about his whereabouts and the reason for his detention.


On 12 August 1993, Zhang Xianliang was sentenced to three years of "re-education through labour" by the Shanghai Municipal Re-education Through Labour Management Committee. He was accused of having "seized the pretext of the Wang Miaogen's affair" to "incite incidents", by writing in May 1993 a "Letter of Protest" and other similar material about Wang's detention and alerting foreign journalists to his case. He was also accused of having made plans with others to organise activities around 4 June 1993. According to the detention order against him, his sentence will run from 16 August 1993 till 15 August 1996. His wife, Yan Huili, received formal notification of the sentence on 21 August 1993. She was allowed to visit him for the first time in late October 1993.


During August 1993, Zhang Xianliang was transferred to the Qingdong re-education through labour farm in Qingpu county, Jiangsu province. He has reportedly been placed on several occasions under strict regime at the farm. He is said to suffer from kidney trouble and heart disease which causes him to feel dizzy when he bends down. Food rations at the farm are reported to be insufficient and it is feared that his health may further deteriorate due to the conditions of his imprisonment.


Zhang Xianliang had taken part in the 1978-79 Democracy Wall movement in Shanghai and been a founder of the unofficial journal "Science and Democracy". In 1982, he was arrested and sentenced one year later to five years' imprisonment on charges of involvement in "counter-revolutionary" activities. Following his release in 1987, both he and his family suffered harassment and discrimination, and Zhang Xianliang had been unemployed as a result over the past three years. He was in touch with a group in Shanghai who have tried for several years to seek legal registration for a Human Rights Association in Shanghai. They have so far been unsuccessful.


Other people reported to have been sentenced to terms of "re-education through labour" in 1993 include Huang Shixu and Lu Gang, two dissidents from Tianjin who were previously detained for their activities during the 1989 pro-democracy movement. They were arrested again in September 1992 after the return visit to China of exiled dissident Shen Tong (see page ) whom they met in Tianjin in August 1992. Both were reportedly sentenced during the summer of 1993 to three years of re-education through labour29. Huang Shixu had been first arrested in June 1989 together with three other people who had formed a democratic association in Tianjin; he subsequently spent over two years in prison. Lu Gang, a former worker in his 30s, had been jailed for three years in 1989 for his involvement in the free labour movement in Tianjin.


Another dissident arrested in connection with Shen Tong's visit to China, Qi Dafeng, was also sentenced to two years of re-education through labour on 25 December 1992 and sent to a labour camp in Xuancheng, Anhui province. He was accused of having conducted "anti-government" activities with Shen Tong in Beijing and Tianjin. Both were arrested at the same time in Beijing in early September 1992. Qi Dafeng, a 29 year-old graduate student from Nankai University in Tianjin, had previously spent over a year in detention following the 1989 protests. In February 1993, unofficial sources reported that Qi Dafeng had gone on a hunger strike after his transfer to the labour camp to protest at malpractice in his case. He had apparently been transferred to the labour camp before receiving formal notification of his sentence, thus being denied the right to appeal for review of the sentence. Four days after starting the hunger strike, he was reportedly extremely weak and had been force-fed by staff at the labour camp. He later sent a letter appealing for review of his case to the Beijing authorities which had passed the sentence. There has been little news about him since then and it is not known whether his application for review was accepted. According to reports dating from February 1993, he was forced to work in a coal mine at the Xuancheng labour camp30.


Numerous other cases of arbitrary detention or imprisonment have occurred in China during the past year. The cases described in this document are those of political dissidents who are known to have been sentenced or to be facing trial. This is not a comprehensive record of all political dissidents detained during the past year on whom Amnesty international has received information. Furthermore, they represent only a small fraction of the arbitrary arrests known to have been carried out in various parts of the country. Hundreds of other people, including Tibetans, Muslims and Christians, have been subjected to arbitrary detention or imprisonment for the peaceful exercise of fundamental human rights. Information about such cases is available in separate documents issued by Amnesty International during the past year31.

6.PHOTOGRAPHS










Liu Jingsheng, see page 7




















Liao Jia'an, see page 13



















Fu Shenqi, see page 18




















Zhang Xianliang, see page 20









7.INDEX OF NAMES WITH CHINESE CHARACTERS

An Ning6, 10, 11

Cao Jianyu12

Chen Qinglin9

Chen Wei8, 9

Chen Yong14

Ding Hancong14

Ding Mao12

Fu Jiqing15

Fu Shenqi17-19

Gao Changyun12

Gao Xiaoliang15, 16

Gao Yuxiang8, 10

Guo Shaoyan11

Han Lifa15

Hu Gang14

Hu Shigen6, 7, 9

Huang Jinwan12

Huang Shixu21

Huang Xiuming12

Kang Yuchun6, 11

Li Jie11

Li Quanli9

Liao Jia'an13

Liu Baiyu12

Liu Bangming14

Liu Chongyun14

Liu Gui14

Liu Jingsheng7-9

Liu Kai17

Liu Wensheng12

Lu Gang21

Lu Mingxia6, 11

Lu Yalin12

Lu Yanghua12

Lu Zhigang6, 7

Lu Zhonghua14

Ma Lianggang12

Meng Zhongwei11

Qi Dafeng22

Rui Chaohuai10

Shen Liangqing12

Shen Tong11, 22

Sun Lin15

Tang Weihua17

Tian Yang12

Wang Guoqi7

Wang Jianping6, 10

Wang Miaogen19, 21

Wang Peizhong9

Wang Qishan11

Wang Shengli13

Wang Tiancheng8, 9

Wang Wanxing19

Wang Xiaodong11

Wang Yangli14

Wang Yuqing14

Wei Jingsheng7

Wen Jie9

Wu Yingling14

Xiao Delong17

Xing Hongwei10

Xing Jiandong19

Xing Shimin12

Xu Dongling10

Xu Zhendong12

Yao Kaiwen15, 16

Yao Tiansheng15

Yu Liangqing12

Yu Zhuo14

Zeng Dazhao14

Zhang Chunzhu9

Zhang Guojun10

Zhang Hanjiang14

Zhang Jian12

Zhang Minpeng13

Zhang Weidong14

Zhang Xianliang17, 19-21

Zhou Yuan17

1In China, the indictment or prosecution takes place after a person has been formally charged - usually several months later. It indicates that the procedure for trial has started and is often closely followed by the trial.

2See United Press International (UPI) report from Beijing, 17.9.93.

3Information about the underground dissident groups has been published in a number of reports and press articles, in particular Zheng Ming (Hong Kong), 1 September 1992 issue, pp.29-31, and Asia Watch's report Economic Reform, Political Repression: Arrests of Dissidents in China since Mid-1992, issued on 2 March 1993. See also press reports by United Press International, 14 November 1991 and 6 April 1992; Hong Kong Mingbao, 16 November 1991; Reuters, 2 February 1992; South China Morning Post, 31 March and 3 June 1992; Hong Kong Wah Kiu Yat Po, 24 June 1992.

4The literal translation of the party's Chinese name is "Freedom and Democracy Party"; it has also been translated as "Free Democratic Party" and "Democratic Liberal Party".

5See South China Morning Post, 12 December 1993.

6Under Chinese law, the word "arrest" (daibu) refers to the stage of the criminal process when a suspect is formally charged with an offence under the Criminal Law. Most suspects are detained for periods varying from a few days to several months before they are formally "arrested" and charged.

7The time-limits prescribed in the Criminal Procedure Law, however, are seldom respected, particularly in political cases. The police frequently detain criminal suspects under regulations which provide for administrative detention, as a convenient way of avoiding the procedures prescribed by the Criminal Procedure Law.

8South China Morning Post, 18 November 1992.

9See United Daily News (Taiwan), cited in "China News and Church Report" of 27 November 1992.

10See Associated Press report, cited in South China Morning Post, 18 August 1993.

11See Hua Chiao Jih Pao, 10 January 1993.

12See the Hong Kong Mingbao, 21 June 1993.

13See UPI report from Beijing of 16 October 1993.

14See China Rights Forum, Fall 1993, page 31.

15See Human Rights in China news release on the case of Yu Zhuo, 13 July 1993.

16Associated Press report cited in South China Morning Post, 12 October 1993.

17The two were Sun Lin, a 36 year-old former painter and cameraman at Shanghai television, and Ms Fu Jiqing, a 47 year-old engineer. Both were reportedly arrested on 1 March 1993 because of their contacts with Wang Ruowang, a well-known dissident writer from Shanghai who left China in August 1992 for the USA. Ms Fu was released after a few weeks, and reportedly demoted by her employer after her release. Sun Lin was formally charged in April with "counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement" but later exempted from prosecution and released in July 1993.

18See South China Morning Post, 21 August 1993.

19See South China Morning Post, 7 September 1993.

20See Reuter report from Shanghai, 4 January 1994, and South China Morning Post, 4 January 1994.

21See South China Morning Post, 4 January 1994.

22There are varying reports about the length of time they spent in detention previously. According to unofficial sources, it was one year. According to press reports citing the court verdict against them, Yao Kaiwen had been detained in a labour camp for 18 months from March 1990 and Gao Xiaoliang for two years after June 1989.

23See Amnesty International's China: Journalists detained in 1993, ASA 17/42/93, 29 November 1993.

24See South China Morning Post, 21 August 1993.

25Asia Watch, Vol.5, No.20, p.11.

26For further information about this punishment and other forms of administrative detention in China, see Amnesty International's report, China - Punishment Without Crime: Administrative Detention, ASA 17/27/91, published in September 1991.

27Wang Miaogen, 41, a former member of an independent labour union founded in 1989 who was jailed for three years after the June 1989 crackdown, had been arrested by police in early May 1993, shortly before the East Asian Games opened in Shanghai. He was reportedly badly beaten by police and then confined to a police-run mental hospital. Wang had reportedly made it known that he opposed the Games. His arrest was one of a number carried out by the Shanghai police to prevent possible disturbances during the Games. While others were released after the Games, Wang Miaogen has remained confined to the mental asylum since May 1993. According to his friends, he does not suffer from mental illness. For further information on his case and those of others confined to mental hospitals, see Amnesty International document China - Medical Concern: Wang Wanxing, Wang Miaogen and Xing Jiandong, ASA 17/44/93, 22 December 1993.

28See above, p., and footnote 27, for further details on the case of Wang Miaogen.

29See Asia Watch, Vol.5, No.20, p.12.

30UPI, Beijing, 26 February 1993.

31See China: New Arrests Reported in Xinjiang, ASA 17/07/93, 22 February 1993; People's Republic of China: New Wave of Arrests Reported in Tibet, ASA 17/15/93, 26 March 1993; Lai Manping and Other Christians, ASA 17/18/93, 10 May 1993; China: Gross Violations of Human Rights Continue, ASA 17/WU 05/93, 28 May 1993; China: Crackdown on Protests in Tibet, ASA 17/WU 06/93, 4 June 1993; Persecution of Christians in China, ASA 17/23/93, June 1993; Christians Imprisoned in China, ASA 17/31/93, August 1993; China: Appeal for Gendun Rinchen, ASA 17/28/93, July 1993; People's Republic of China: August Arrests in Tibet, ASA 17/37/93; China: Journalists Detained in 1993, ASA 17/42/93, 29 November 1993.

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