Journalist Li Yuanlong Indicted for Subversion for E-mailing Essays Abroad

The Bijie People's Procuratorate in Guizhou province charged Li Yuanlong, a journalist with the Bijie Daily, on February 9, 2006, with inciting subversion of state power in connection with his using software to circumvent China's Internet censorship and e-mailing essays to the operators of foreign Web sites that the Chinese government blocks, according to a copy of the indictment posted on the Boxun Web site on March 1. According to a February 27 Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) press release, Li reported on rural poverty, and had been censored in recent years because of complaints by local officials embarrassed by his reports. CPJ reported that Chinese authorities have prevented his family from visiting him since his detention, but a local lawyer has seen him twice.

Li's wife said officials from the Ministry of State Security detained him on September 9, 2005, Agence France-Presse reported (via the Hong Kong Standard) on February 28. Chinese authorities arrested Li on September 29. According to a February 28 Reporters Without Borders report, on October 22, officials transferred his case to the Bijie district procuratorate, but after a month-long investigation the procuratorate informed the court that there was insufficient evidence to bring him to trial. In December 2005, the procuratorate sent the case back to state security requesting further investigation. State security returned the case to the procuratorate in January, requesting they reinstitute their prosecution, Radio Free Asia reported on February 2. According to the indictment, the Bijie procuratorate considered the following acts as constituting incitement to subvert state power in violation of Article 105(2) of the Criminal Law and Article 2(1) of the Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress Regarding Safeguarding Internet Safety:

• Beginning on February 5, 2005, Li used "Freegate," "Ultrareach," and other software to access foreign Web sites.
• Between May and August 2005, Li used the names "Night Wolf" and "yehaolang" to send e-mails using a Hotmail account to "Boxun," "Epoch Times," and other foreign Web sites containing four articles with titles such as "In My Mind, I'm Becoming an American" and "Common Birth, Tragic Death."
• Li's essays "fabricated, distorted, and exaggerated relevant facts, and incited subversion of state power and overthrow of the socialist system."

Li Jiangqiang, a lawyer and a member of the Independent Chinese Pen Center who has represented other journalists and writers, including Yang Tianshui, has agreed to represent Li Yuanlong without charge, Human Rights in China reported on February 24.