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10 June
2010 Since Gao Zhisheng, a Chinese human rights lawyer, disappeared
on When British Foreign Secretary David Miliband visited Gao and his family has been
under harassment for taking up politically sensitive cases. To call for the Chinese government to release
Gao Zhisheng and stop
harassing human rights defenders, ACPP issued UA090330(1) in
March 2009. Sources: South China Morning Post, Human Right in |
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31 March 2009 British
Foreign Secretary, David Miliband, raised the case
of missing human rights lawyer, Gao Zhisheng, at a press conference in Subversion is a broadly defined charge and often used against criticism of the Communist Party, and can carry sentences of more than ten years. Gao, who is known for taking on sensitive cases involving the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement and defending prominent government opponents and Christian groups, has been missing for more than one year since February 2009. The government has previously provided no solid information about his status or whereabouts, but he was widely thought to be in custody. His case has drawn international attention for the unusual length of his disappearance and for the reports of torture he has endured. The China Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group, at its statement on 18 March 2010, condemned the Chinese authorities ¡§frivolous and irresponsible in handling this case of disappearance of a citizen in their country.¡¨ They also called on everyone to continue demanding the Chinese government to immediately disclose Gao Zhisheng¡¦s whereabouts and health condition, and clarify the grounds on which his sentence based. An international legal team, formed with four overseas legal specialists, filed an urgent action petition with the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on 10 March 2010 for Gao's case. The Team hopes to obtain an opinion from the Working Group that the Chinese government's detention of Gao is in violation of the "Body of Principles for the Protection of All Persons under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment" and thus calls for Gao's release. In response to worldwide concern for Gao's arbitrary detention and personal safety, ACPP issued UA090330(1) in March 2009 to urge the Chinese authorities to release Gao and to stop harassing human rights defenders and their families. Sources: |
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2 June 2009 While
Ms Geng He fled from On the other hand, another human rights lawyer Mr. Guo Feixiong, aka Yang Maodong, has been denied the right to meet visitors, including family members. According to China Human Rights Lawyer Concern Group, Mr. Guo's family was barred from visiting him for more than two months. Mr. Guo's elder sister has been inquiring for the reason for the denial of visits without success. Until 4 May, she was informed that Mr. Guo “infringed the rules”, thus he was not allowed to meet visitors. On the following day, the ward guard deterred Mr. Guo's younger brother from visiting, claiming due to swine flu. Mr. Guo has been tortured during interrogation, he has been deprived of sleep, his hands and legs were shackled for weeks, and his genitalia was beaten with an electric rod. His communication with lawyer and family were intercepted by the authorities. The denial of visit to family and lawyer poses concern on the risk to his personal security. The blind lawyer, Chen Guangcheng's situation is even more vulnerable. He has suffered from diarrhea for nine months but has been denied medical treatment in the prison. His wife, Yuan Weijing, is under tight surveillance for speaking up for him. She is even not allowed to accompany her son, a Grade 1 pupil, to school. ACPP deplores the on-going persecution
to human rights defenders in Source: |