Guangdong Public Security Bureau Blames Mass Incidents on Rights Defender Activities

March 31, 2006

The Guangdong Public Security Bureau (PSB) has circulated a report that blames a succession of mass protests in 2005 on "disputes over so-called rights defense," according to a February 24 Ming Pao article (in Chinese). Public security officials indicated that in 2006, they will concentrate on striking against internal and external "hostile forces" who get involved in domestic issues of "rights defense." The report blames hostile forces for politicizing issues of farmer and consumer economic rights, and taking advantage of individual incidents to write essays stirring public opinion. It accuses these forces of inciting the masses, who are unaware of the truth, to create disturbances that threaten the construction of a harmonious and stable society in Guangdong.

The Guangdong Public Security Bureau (PSB) has circulated a report that blames a succession of mass protests in 2005 on "disputes over so-called rights defense," according to a February 24 Ming Pao article (in Chinese). Public security officials indicated that in 2006, they will concentrate on striking against internal and external "hostile forces" who get involved in domestic issues of "rights defense." The report blames hostile forces for politicizing issues of farmer and consumer economic rights, and taking advantage of individual incidents to write essays stirring public opinion. It accuses these forces of inciting the masses, who are unaware of the truth, to create disturbances that threaten the construction of a harmonious and stable society in Guangdong.

The number of mass incidents in Guangdong, and public order disturbances across the country, has been on the rise and reflects a general increase in social unrest in China. Despite increasing unrest, Communist Party officials have ruled out significant political reform as a response, and instead emphasized the need to strengthen Party control over society and government. While Chinese leaders emphasize the need to "strike hard" to counter social unrest, domestic scholars and activists have called attention to repeated government abuses of power. Activists have launched a hunger strike relay to lend their support to "laborers, farmers, intellectuals, free [religious] believers, as well as Party, government, military, police, and members of all communities and all groups (including petitioners and social activists in all places) who are illegally persecuted or violently beaten." Concurrent with its report on the Guangdong PSB's announcement, Ming Pao Daily published a commentary cautioning that going forward, "administrative agencies may perhaps adopt even more severe measures of repression against a number of human rights defenders in domestic intellectual circles, who participate in rights defender activities."

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights defines a "human rights defender" as someone who acts on behalf of individuals or groups to promote and protect civil and political rights, and to promote, protect, and realize economic, social, and cultural rights. The definition includes those who focus on good governance and advocate for an end to government abuse of power. With the release of the report, the Guangdong PSB has made explicit its campaign against human rights defenders such as Yang Maodong (who is better known by his pen name, Guo Feixiong), and linked their activities directly to crimes of disturbing public order. Guangdong officials formally arrested Guo in October 2005 for "gathering people to disturb public order," a crime under Article 290 of China's Criminal Law. The charge was related to Guo's efforts to provide legal advice to the residents of Taishi village, Guangzhou city, in their recall campaign against the village committee head. Guangdong officials ultimately dropped the charge and released Guo in December 2005, but a February 1 South China Morning Post article (subscription required) noted that plainclothes security officers began 24-hour surveillance of his activities on January 29. Guo spent January 30 and 31 in Taishi village and posted an essay (in Chinese) on the Boxun Web site, recounting his visit. According to the essay, officials told villagers that Guo and his associates wished to overthrow the Chinese Communist Party and warned the villagers to distance themselves from these activists.

The Guangdong PSB's campaign against Guo and others disregards the peaceful nature of their activities, runs counter to international law, and fails to address the underlying discontent that has fueled social unrest. Guo and others have maintained a strict policy of non-violent action (such as hunger strikes) to protest government abuses of power, and invoked through announcements on February 7 and 16 (both posted via the Epoch Times, in Chinese) other non-violent rights movements led by Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Article 12 of the Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (also known as the "Declaration on Human Rights Defenders") provides that "everyone is entitled, individually and in association with others, to be protected effectively under national law in reacting against or opposing, through peaceful means," government abuses and violence infringing on citizen rights. However, the Guangdong report justifies sustained repression and punishment, rather than protection, of human rights defenders in China. On February 3, Beijing lawyer Gao Zhisheng wrote in an essay (posted by Boxun, in Chinese), "The Chinese Communist Party itself is ruining our [nation's] hopes for peaceful transformation." According to a February 11 Wen Wei Po article (in Chinese), on February 7, Premier Wen Jiabao told a group of businessmen and grassroots representatives who gathered for an informal discussion at the Zhongnanhai leadership compound in Beijing, "The reason we invited all of you to come [to Zhongnanhai] is because we want you to express more opinions." When Guo traveled to the entrance of Zhongnanhai on February 8 to express his grievances, he was instead detained upon arrival and forcibly returned to Guangzhou, according to February 10 reports by the Epoch Times, Boxun, and RFA (all in Chinese).

The (Xinhua Gate) Peaceful Petition (posted via Boxun, in Chinese), which Guo carried with him to Zhongnanhai, brought attention to the ongoing violence against human rights defenders, the conflict in Taishi village, the December 2005 shootings in nearby Shanwei city, also in Guangdong, and the closing of the Yannan Forum, an electronic bulletin board service where Internet users discussed sensitive political issues. In the petition, Guo called on President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen to address these issues by ensuring the safety of human rights defenders; respecting the lawful rights of citizens to initiate recall campaigns and participate in village elections; appealing to the law, rather than the People's Armed Police, to resolve forced eviction and other local conflicts; and respecting citizens' freedom of expression. Guo has consistently called attention to government abuses of power in Guangdong, including through a February 2 essay on The Widespread Infringement of Human Rights Suffered by Rights Defenders (posted via Boxun, in Chinese). The essay notes that Guangdong officials have targeted and authorized repressive, or even violent, measures against the following human rights defenders:
 

  • Professor Ai Xiaoming of Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, who posted an open letter to Premier Wen Jiabao regarding events in Taishi village.
  • Gao Zhisheng, head of the Beijing Shengzhi Law Firm, which provided legal advice to residents of Taishi village and employed Guo Feixiong.
  • Guo Yan, a Guangzhou lawyer who provided legal representation on behalf of Taishi villagers and Guo Feixiong (no relation to Guo Yan) when he was first detained.
  • Lu Banglie, a local people's congress deputy from Zhijiang city, Hubei province, who provided legal advice to residents of Taishi village.
  • Tang Jingling, a Guangzhou lawyer who provided legal representation on behalf of Taishi villagers and Guo Feixiong when Guo was first detained.
  • Yao Lifa, a vocal democracy activist and former local people's congress deputy who posted an open letter to the local district people's government condemning the government's handling of the Taishi recall campaign.
  • Zhao Xin, a member of the Independent Chinese PEN Center and Executive Director of the Empowerment and Rights Institute, which assisted Taishi villagers in their recall campaign and issued a statement questioning the legality of local official actions.

For additional information on the peaceful activities of these human rights defenders and the government's repressive response, see below.
 


HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS LISTED BY GUO FEIXIONG

Ai Xiaoming. Ai Xiaoming is a professor at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou city, Guangdong province. In response to the clash between Taishi villagers and local officials on September 12, 2005, Ai posted a September 15 open letter to Premier Wen Jiabao through the Citizens Rights Net, and included a list of people in Taishi village who were detained the previous day. Authorities shut down Ai's Web site on October 5, after she posted a description of a September 26 incident in which security forces "smashed" a taxi that was taking her and two lawyers home from a visit to Taishi village. Citing an unnamed source, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported that officials had warned Ai to forget the Taishi case.

Gao Zhisheng. Gao Zhisheng, head of the Beijing Shengzhi Law Firm, is a rights advocate who has represented numerous activists and taken on sensitive cases of interest to news media and human rights organizations. In 2005, Gao took part in the criminal defense of Guo Feixiong, Shanghai lawyer Guo Guoting, Internet author Zheng Yichun, Christian activist Xiao Yunfei (the detained wife of house church leader Pastor Cai Zhuohua), and democracy activist Xu Wanping. Gao issued an October 18, 2005 open letter to President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao, exposing widespread torture against Falun Gong practitioners. On November 4, officials closed down Gao's law firm and began a continuing campaign of harassment and repression against Gao, his family, and various associates, which led to physical altercations between Gao and plainclothes security officers on January 13 and 17. Gao has continued to write about government abuses and issued two more open letters, as well as several investigative reports and Internet essays. He launched the nationwide hunger strike relay on February 4.

Guo Feixiong. Guo Feixiong, whose true name is Yang Maodong, is a legal activist and writer who advised Taishi villagers on their recall campaign. The Empowerment and Rights Institute, Epoch Times, and SCMP reported that Guo was initially held incommunicado after villagers clashed with local officials on September 12, 2005. He was formally arrested on October 4 for "gathering a crowd to disturb public order," and launched a month-long hunger strike while in detention. Authorities released him, without charge, from the Shawan Detention Center on December 27 and have allegedly placed him under surveillance. On February 8, Guo launched his 48-hour leg of the nationwide hunger strike relay before the entrance of the Zhongnanhai leadership compound in Beijing. He was held for 24 hours before officials forced him back to Guangzhou.

Guo Yan. Guo Yan provided legal representation on behalf of Taishi villagers and Guo Feixiong (no relation to Guo Yan) when he was first detained. On September 26, 2005, about a week before Guo Feixiong's formal arrest, she and fellow Guangdong lawyer Tang Jingling received a letter requesting legal assistance on the criminal case. The two lawyers immediately traveled to the Shawan Detention Center, where officials held Guo Feixiong. Professor Ai Xiaoming accompanied the two lawyers home from Taishi village and recounted their attack by unidentified assailants in a Web site posting. The posting noted that Guo Yan was beaten when she left the taxi to seek help. Radio Free Asia (RFA) reported that both Guo Yan and Tang Jingling were fired from their respective law firms in early November, around the same time the Beijing Justice Bureau shut down Gao Zhisheng's law firm. Guo told RFA that she could not talk about the firing, but other lawyers who participated on the Taishi villagers' legal team speculated that the Guangzhou Justice Bureau had intervened, and that the firing was a direct result of Guo's involvement in Taishi.

Lu Banglie. According to The Guardian, RFA, and the Committee to Protect Journalists, Lu Banglie is a local people's congress deputy from Zhijiang city, Hubei province, who was beaten by unidentified assailants on October 8, 2005, when he escorted a Guardian journalist to Taishi village, Guangdong province. According to the Washington Post, state media hailed him as a "front-runner of peasant grassroots democracy" in 2003, when he endured beatings and a hunger strike to recall the allegedly corrupt leader of his own village in Zhijiang. Lu then ran as an independent candidate and won 80 percent of the votes. The Washington Post reported that Lu advised Taishi villagers on their recall campaign, and was subjected to interrogation by local officials on September 16. RFA reported that local officials in Guangzhou forced Lu back to Hubei on October 10 and again on November 18.

Tang Jingling. Tang Jingling provided legal representation on behalf of Taishi villagers and Guo Feixiong when Guo was first detained. On September 26, 2005, about a week before Guo's formal arrest, Tang and fellow Guangdong lawyer Guo Yan (no relation to Guo Feixiong) received a letter requesting legal assistance on his criminal case. The two lawyers immediately traveled to the Shawan Detention Center, where officials held Guo Feixiong. Professor Ai Xiaoming accompanied the two lawyers home from Taishi village and recounted their attack by unidentified assailants in a Web site posting. Tang allegedly misused paperwork authorized by the Beijing Shengzhi Law Firm to accompany Gao Zhisheng's legal assistant, Wen Haibo, on a separate visit to see Guo. RFA reported that Tang's unauthorized visit was part of the reason authorities shut down Gao Zhisheng's law firm on November 4. According to the Network of Chinese Rights Defenders (CRD), Tang's involvement in Taishi led to his firing from his own law firm around the same time as the closing of Gao's law firm. CRD also reported that Tang was beaten by unidentified assailants who followed him after a visit to Guo's home on February 1.

Wen Haibo. Beijing lawyer Wen Haibo is Gao Zhisheng's legal assistant and an employee of the Beijing Shengzhi Law Firm. Wen took on significant responsibility for Guo Feixiong's criminal case and traveled to the Shawan Detention Center to visit Guo on several occasions. Authorities alleged that on one visit, Guangzhou lawyer Tang Jingling accompanied Wen and misused paperwork authorized by the Beijing Shengzhi Law Firm to see Guo in detention. RFA reported that Tang's unauthorized visit was part of the reason authorities shut down Gao Zhisheng's law firm on November 4, 2005. According to reports by the Epoch Times, Wen was one of the first to be taken into official custody on February 16, as part of a crackdown related to the nationwide hunger strike relay.

Yao Lifa. According to the BBC, Yao Lifa is a vocal democracy activist who became one of China's first independent candidates elected to a local people's congress. While in office in Qianjiang city, Hubei province, from 1999 to 2004, Yao campaigned against the wasting of public funds and attempted to overturn disputed election results. He was unsuccessful in his bid for a follow-up term, but has continued to compete in provincial and municipal elections and advise farmers on how to run lawful campaigns for grassroots-level positions. The Voice of America (VOA) reported that he was beaten by a group of unidentified assailants on July 1, 2005, and received phone threats warning him to stop "popularizing the law." In response to the clash between Taishi villagers and local officials on September 12, Yao posted a September 26 open letter to the Panyu district people's government on the Boxun Web site, and condemned the government's handling of the villagers' recall campaign. BBC, VOA, and the SCMP reported that Yao was again beaten by unidentified assailants on November 5, while he was educating villagers in Qianjiang on the election process.

Zhao Xin. Zhao Xin is a member of the Independent Chinese PEN Center and Executive Director of the Empowerment and Rights Institute, which assisted Taishi villagers in their recall campaign and issued a September 21 statement through the Epoch Times Web site questioning the legality of local official actions. The Washington Post and RFA reported that he raised funds to help support the campaign and to hire criminal defense lawyers on behalf of those arrested. Zhao was himself detained on January 21, 2005, for applying to hold a march to commemorate Zhao Ziyang. He was released on March 24. The Epoch Times reported that two days before Taishi villagers clashed with local officials on September 12, Zhao publicly announced his withdrawal from the Communist Youth League. In November, Beijing authorities permitted him to leave the city and accompany his parents to Sichuan province. Boxun and the Washington Post reported that unidentified assailants attacked Zhao while he traveled through Sichuan, while seven members of his tour group remained unharmed and stood by to watch. Zhao speculated that Taishi officials may have arranged for the beating as punishment for his involvement in the recall campaign.