Authorities Release One China Democracy Party Leader, Detain Another Member

November 28, 2006

Authorities in Hangzhou city, Zhejiang province, released Zhu Yufu, a China Democracy Party (CDP) leader, on September 15 after he completed a seven-year sentence for participating in pro-democracy activities, according to a September 17 Voice of America (VOA) article (in Chinese). Other sources, such as a September 14 Radio Free Asia (RFA) interview (in Chinese), report that Zhu was released on September 14, the date that his sentence expired under Article 47 of the Criminal Law. The VOA article and the RFA interview further note that Zhu was released from Zhejiang No. 6 Prison, also known as Qiaosi Prison, where he served most of his sentence. Zhu is subject to three years' deprivation of political rights after release.

Authorities in Hangzhou city, Zhejiang province, released Zhu Yufu, a China Democracy Party (CDP) leader, on September 15 after he completed a seven-year sentence for participating in pro-democracy activities, according to a September 17 Voice of America (VOA) article (in Chinese). Other sources, such as a September 14 Radio Free Asia (RFA) interview (in Chinese), report that Zhu was released on September 14, the date that his sentence expired under Article 47 of the Criminal Law. The VOA article and the RFA interview further note that Zhu was released from Zhejiang No. 6 Prison, also known as Qiaosi Prison, where he served most of his sentence. Zhu is subject to three years' deprivation of political rights after release.

Several leading Chinese activists founded the CDP in 1998 to promote multi-party politics, direct elections, and checks on abuse of state power. The CDP's founding declaration (in Chinese) calls for an orderly and peaceful transformation of Chinese politics. Chinese authorities, however, do not tolerate independent political parties that might challenge one-party rule. For example, in the July 1 edition (in Chinese) of Seeking Truth, the official journal of the Party Central Committee, Liu Yandong, Deputy Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and head of the Central Committee's United Front Department, wrote: "In modern times the form and duty of the development of Chinese society has determined that there is no room for Western two-party or multi-party systems to exist. ..." In a crackdown on the CDP in 1999, Chinese courts convicted numerous CDP members, including Zhu, according to the RFA interview. About 30 more CDP members remain in prison, according to a September 15 Associated Press (AP) article that appeared via Forbes.

The Hangzhou Intermediate People's Court convicted Zhu for having circulated pro-democracy articles online and publishing a political journal, among other activities, according to the AP article. Zhu previously participated in the Hangzhou Democracy Wall Movement in 1978, and supported the Tiananmen democracy protests in 1989, according to the RFA interview. The VOA reports that Zhu helped to establish the CDP's Zhejiang provincial branch in 1998. Major events in his 1999 arrest and imprisonment include:

  • June 19, 1999: Local authorities place Zhu under house arrest.
  • September 15, 1999: Local authorities detain and formally arrest Zhu.
  • October 25, 1999: The Hangzhou Intermediate People's Court tries Zhu, as well as CDP members Xu Guang, Wu Yilong, and Mao Qingxiang.
  • November 2, 1999: The Hangzhou Intermediate People's Court convicts Zhu, Xu, Wu, and Mao of "subversion of state power," a crime under Article 105, Paragraph 1, of the Criminal Law, and sentences them to 7 years, 5 years, 11 years, and 8 years in prison, respectively.
  • December 18, 1999: Zhu's appeal of his conviction is rejected.

On the same day as Zhu's scheduled release, Chinese authorities detained Internet essayist and CDP member Chen Shuqing under accusations of "incitement to subvert state power," a crime under Article 105, Paragraph 2, of the Criminal Law, according to a September 15 Boxun article (in Chinese). A September 19 Reporters Without Borders article noted that police searched Chen's home and confiscated documents as well as disk drives from his computer. RFA reported on September 18 (in Chinese) that after Chen’s detention, police in Hangzhou questioned CDP members Gao Haibin, Wu Yuanming, and Wang Rongqing about Chen's personal contacts, writings, and his involvement in a hunger strike proposed by Beijing lawyer Gao Zhisheng and other rights defenders. Chen is a leading member of the Zhejiang provincial branch of the CDP, according to an October 10 letter issued by the Writers in Prison Committee of International PEN.

Chen participated in pro-democracy student movements in the late 1980s, and was detained for four months in 1999 for organizing CDP activities, according to a September 19 RFA article (in Chinese) and the Reporters Without Borders article. In 2005, he passed the national bar examination, but the Zhejiang provincial Justice Bureau denied him a license to practice law due to his involvement with the CDP, according to the September 19 RFA article. Chen appealed this decision twice, but lost, according to the Reporters Without Borders article.

For additional information on Zhu Yufu, see case information searchable through the CECC Political Prisoner Database. For more information on the Chinese government's view of representative democratic institutions, see Section VII(b) on Institutions of Democratic Governance and Legislative Reform in the CECC's 2006 Annual Report.