Criminal Justice
Congressional-Executive Commission on China
www.cecc.gov
CECC Contact: 202–226–3766
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
WASHINGTON, D.C. – CECC Chairman Senator Sherrod Brown and Cochairman Representative Christopher Smith today urged the Chinese government to end the unlawful home confinement of Liu Xia, the wife of imprisoned 2010 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo, and to respect her internationally-recognized right to freedom of movement.
Update: Anticorruption and Transparency Advocates Already Sentenced
In 2013, authorities commenced a crackdown on anticorruption and transparency advocates, many linked to the “New Citizens’ Movement,” which is a broad network of individuals promoting legal and political reforms, human rights, and social justice. In late 2013 and early 2014, authorities began trials for several of these advocates and courts have already handed down sentences in some cases:
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Corruption takes many forms in China, from corrupt officials at all levels using their public office for private gain and seizing land for development to corrupt state-owned enterprises gaming the system to their advantage. Corruption also continues to be among the root causes of rights abuses against Chinese citizens.
In early September 2013, PEN International (PEN), an international organization of writers, reported that Chinese authorities released journalist and democracy advocate Shi Tao from prison on August 23, after he served less than 9 years of a 10-year prison sentence (New York Times (NYT), 7 September 13).
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Under China's reeducation through labor system, Chinese officials can order citizens to be held in reeducation through labor centers for up to four years without a trial or legal representation. There are no definitive figures, but hundreds of thousands of Chinese may currently be held in these centers.
Chen Kegui Denied Appropriate Medical Treatment, Medical Parole