Chinese #MeToo activist Huang has been sentenced to five years on charges of subversion, supporters say
Written by David Kirton and Laurie Chen
GUANGZHOU/BEIJING (Reuters) – Leading Chinese #MeToo activist Huang Xueqin was sentenced to five years in prison after being found guilty on Friday of coup d’état in a court in southern China, according to a group campaigning for her release and a copy of the court order. court decision.
Huang, a 35-year-old freelance journalist, plans to appeal his sentence, supporters said. Labor activist Wang Jianbing, 40, who was also tried with Huang, was sentenced to three years and six months. It was not clear whether he would appeal the case.
“(The sentence) was longer than we expected,” said a spokesman for the campaign group Free Huang Xueqin and Wang Jianbing, who asked not to be named for security reasons.
“I don’t think it should have been this difficult, and it’s completely unnecessary. So we support Huang Xueqin’s intention to appeal.”
Detained by Chinese authorities since September 2021, the pair went on trial last year. The pair denied wrongdoing during the closed court hearing, supporters said.
The charges of treason against the two were based on the gatherings they often hold for young people in China where they discussed social issues.
“Their efforts and dedication to work, women’s rights, and society as a whole will not be ignored by this unjust case, and society will not forget their contributions. On the contrary, as oppression continues and injustice grows, more activists like them will continue to rise,” the campaign team, created especially activists based overseas, in a statement before the decision.
There was heavy security at the Guangzhou People’s Court on Friday morning, with police questioning people who were there.
The charge of “promoting the overthrow of state power” is commonly used by the Chinese government against dissidents and carries a five-year prison sentence but can be longer if the suspect is considered a leader or has committed a serious crime.
The day before his arrest on September 19, 2021, Huang was scheduled to fly to Britain to begin a master’s degree at the University of Sussex on a scholarship sponsored by the British government, the campaign group said.
Huang, who spoke out about China’s #MeToo movement and Hong Kong’s 2019 anti-government protests, was detained by Chinese police for three months in late 2019.
The two activists were held in solitary confinement for months, supporters previously said. Guangzhou police did not respond to a faxed request for comment.
