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Chinese court says prominent rights lawyer pleads guilty
By Joanna CHIU
Beijing (AFP) May 8, 2017


China rebuffs UN criticism of lawyer's detention
Beijing (AFP) May 8, 2017 - China rejected on Monday criticism from the United Nations over the detention of a Chinese human rights lawyer, calling it an interference in the country's domestic affairs.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said on Friday that it was "deeply troubled" by last Wednesday's detention of Chen Jiangang, a vocal civil rights defender, and his family during a vacation.

"We are dismayed by this continuing pattern of harassment of lawyers, through continued detention, without full due process guarantees and with alleged exposure to ill-treatment," the UN office added.

Foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang responded on Monday saying that the UN agency's statement "disregards objectivity and constitutes an interference in China domestic affairs and judicial sovereignty".

Beijing has come under increased fire from the international community as it tightens the screws on the country's civil society in a clampdown that is said to have relied on torture and illegal detentions to punish critics of the government.

While the government initially targeted political activists and human rights campaigners, it has increasingly turned its attention to lawyers who represent them.

Chen's family was released on Thursday morning and permitted to fly back to Beijing.

But Chen was forced to drive 3,200-kilometre (2,000-mile) back with three police escorts, according to Amnesty International.

Chen told AFP in a text message on Monday that he was still on the road, driving through Taiyuan County in Shanxi province, about five hours from Beijing.

Chen was a former defence lawyer for Xie Yang, who was detained during the "709 crackdown" in the summer of 2015, when authorities rounded up some 200 legal staff and activists.

Chen remained vocal on Xie's case, drawing attention to his former client's allegations of torture in police custody, even after a court in the central city of Changsha denied Xie his pick of defence and provided court-appointed lawyers instead.

Xie pleaded guilty on Monday to charges of "inciting subversion of state power and disrupting court order". His sentencing date was not announced.

A leading Chinese human rights lawyer whose case has drawn international scrutiny pleaded guilty Monday to charges of "inciting subversion of state power" in what critics called a "show trial."

Xie Yang, who had worked on cases considered politically sensitive by China's ruling Communist Party, was among hundreds of legal staff and activists detained in the so-called "709 crackdown" in the summer of 2015.

The Global Times newspaper posted a video of the trial on Twitter showing a judge ask Xie whether authorities had upheld his rights.

"Yes they did, completely," said Xie, wearing a polo shirt as he answered into a microphone. Asked if authorities elicited confessions through torture, he replied: "No, I was not subjected to torture of any kind."

Xie previously claimed police used "sleep deprivation, long interrogations, beatings, death threats, humiliations" on him.

The United States and the European Union have voiced concern over his case.

Eleven countries, including Canada, Australia and Switzerland, have cited Xie's case in a letter to Beijing criticising China's detention practices.

Changsha Intermediate People's Court, in central China, said that Xie pleaded guilty to charges of "inciting subversion of state power and disrupting court order."

A transcript of the court hearing said he had confessed to receiving "training" in Hong Kong and South Korea.

When the judge asked him what kind of training, he answered: "The brainwashing of Western constitutional thoughts" in order to "overthrow the existing system and develop Western constitutionalism in China".

Xie had defended mainland supporters of Hong Kong democracy activists. His own former lawyer was detained last week.

The trial concluded Monday and the court will later set a date for his sentencing.

- 'Show trial' -

There was no prior public notice of the trial, and Xie's wife -- who fled to the United States earlier this year -- told AFP she heard nothing from authorities.

"The court claims family members are in attendance at the trial, but I wasn't able to reach any of them," she said.

Last-minute delays or sudden announcements of sensitive trials are not uncommon even though Chinese law requires courts to give a defendant's family and lawyers three days notice of any changes.

"Xie made a series of sworn testimonies to his family-appointed lawyer that police and prosecutors tortured him to force him to confess, which he said he did to make the pain stop," Frances Eve, researcher for the charity Chinese Human Rights Defenders, told AFP.

"Today's show trial deprives Xie of independent legal counsel and glosses over his torture allegations," Eve said.

On April 25, dozens of supporters and at least seven diplomats had gathered at the Changsha court, only to be told the trial was indefinitely postponed.

Since they received no confirmation of the new trial date, diplomatic sources told AFP they were not prepared to return to attend it.

Local activists said in social media posts that they were "warned" on Sunday not to go to Changsha, without providing details about the warnings.

"As the trial was conducted in a closed manner and his family actually wasn't properly informed, it's very similar to the sham trials we saw for (lawyer) Zhou Shifeng and others last year," Amnesty International China researcher Patrick Poon told AFP.

"It's questionable how we can believe what's said in such a setting," Poon added.

The "709 crackdown" -- named after the date of the first disappearance on July 9, 2015 -- was the toughest against China's civil society for years.

The majority were released on bail, but last year courts found six of them guilty of serious crimes, with sentences ranging from no additional jail time to seven years in prison.

- Xie's lawyer detained -

Xie's former attorney, Chen Jiangang, was detained by authorities last week while he was vacationing with his family in the remote southwestern province of Yunnan. He was forced to drive back to Beijing under police escort.

The United Nations' human rights office condemned Chen's arrest as part of a "continuing pattern of harassment of lawyers, through continued detention, without full due process."

The Chinese foreign ministry rejected the UN agency's criticism as "interference".

SINO DAILY
Chinese human rights lawyers seen as enemies of the state
Beijing (AFP) May 8, 2017
A leading Chinese human rights lawyer went on trial Monday for inciting subversion, in a case which sparked an international outcry after claims he was tortured. Xie Yang, who had worked on numerous cases considered politically sensitive by China's ruling Communist Party, was among hundreds of legal staff and activists detained in summer 2015. The "709 crackdown" - named after the date ... read more

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