Mainland rights activist Ni Yulan and her husband will go on trial this week after representing victims of land grabs, as China cracks down on political dissent.
Ni and Dong Jiqin were detained in April as authorities rounded up scores of rights defenders and activists amid anonymous internet calls for protests in China similar to those that have swept the Arab world.
The couple will appear in court in Beijing tomorrow on charges of “inciting a disturbance,” their daughter, Dong Xuan, said.
They will plead not guilty, she added.
“The police have not allowed me to see my parents since they were detained more than eight months ago,” she said. “Our lawyer saw my mother last week and said she was not in good health.”
The couple have provided legal assistance to numerous families who have been forcibly evicted from their homes in government-backed land requisitions.
Their battle to oppose the land grabs began in 2001 after their courtyard home in central Beijing was requisitioned and marked for demolition.
Trained as a lawyer, Ni, 51, was sentenced to a year in jail in 2002 for “obstructing official business” and for two years in 2008 for “harming public property” – charges brought against her as she tried to protect her home.
She was also disbarred from legal practice in 2002.
The couple said they have not been compensated for the loss of their home.
A Hong Kong-based group, Chinese Human Rights Defenders, said Ni was left disabled after being beaten by police in 2002 and suffers from severe health problems.
She is unable to stand and is also suffering from swollen lymph nodes, and cannot afford medical treatment, the group added.
The trial comes after a court in southwest Guizhou province this week sentenced veteran activist Chen Xi for 10 years for subversion.
Another longtime dissident, Chen Wei, was jailed for nine years in Sichuan, also for subversion.
