2015-08-12
A group of Chinese rights lawyers and activists has called on the United States to put pressure on Beijing at this year’s bilateral human rights dialogue in the wake of a nationwide crackdown on the country’s embattled legal profession and a slew of repressive laws.
They say previous dialogues have done little to improve matters for peaceful critics of the ruling Chinese Communist Party, nor those who seek to stand up for their legal rights using the judicial system.
While the dialogues had drawn attention to the issues and provided a platform for bilateral discussion, they “did not substantially help improve China’s human rights situation, which, on the contrary, has deteriorated in the past two years,” according to a statement signed by 38 rights lawyers and activists ahead of the dialogues that run from Thursday to Friday in Washington.
“What should not be ignored is that this round of the human rights dialogue takes place in the backdrop of a massive police operations,” said the statement, translated and released by the overseas-based Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD) network, which collates and translates reports from groups in China.
The authorities have carried out a massive program of “enforced involuntary disappearances, interrogation, and harassment of lawyers and other rights activists,” it said, adding that the targeting of rights lawyers had already been an issue before the July 9 night raid on Beijing’s Fengrui law firm kicked off the latest operation.
It said Beijing has simultaneously been rolling out a slew of new laws and amendments to existing legislation that legitimize political persecution and the suppression of human rights.
“The Chinese government should release all lawyers and activists who have been arbitrarily detained and forcibly disappeared (secretly imprisoned) since July 9,” the statement said.
“Both sides should put forth concrete and verifiable plans to avoid continued persecution of lawyers and activists after the dialogue.”
It cited a number of amendments and new laws that are in breach of China’s Constitution, including amendments to the Criminal Law and the Criminal Procedure Law.
Risk of retaliation
There are concerns that those who signed the statement remain at risk of official retaliation for speaking out.
“The Chinese government should guarantee the personal safety of non-government activists (including lawyers) who have expressed views and made suggestions regarding the dialogue,” the statement said.
It said that only the participation of civic societies in both countries can guarantee any progress in bilateral human rights dialogues.
“If the rights of lawyers can’t be guaranteed, then still less will there be protection for the rights of other citizens,” rights lawyer Han Qingfang, who signed the letter, told RFA on Wednesday.
“We want to use everyone’s concern for human rights in the hope of improving the lot of rights lawyers,” she said.
The crackdown on lawyers has also targeted members of their staff and associates.
The daughter of detained rights lawyer Li Heping said his assistant Gao Yue has now been detained on suspicion of “incitement to subvert state power,” and had been denied permission to meet with a lawyer.
