Beijing Court Tries Hu Jia, Official Abuses Reported

May 5, 2008

The Beijing Number 1 Intermediate People's Court tried activist Hu Jia on charges of "inciting subversion of state power" on March 18 from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., according to a March 18 Radio Free Asia (RFA) article. Hu, who has advocated on behalf of HIV/AIDS patients, environmental issues, and rights defenders such as Chen Guangcheng, pleaded not guilty, according to a March 18 Reuters article.

The Beijing Number 1 Intermediate People's Court tried activist Hu Jia on charges of "inciting subversion of state power" on March 18 from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., according to a March 18 Radio Free Asia (RFA) article. Hu, who has advocated on behalf of HIV/AIDS patients, environmental issues, and rights defenders such as Chen Guangcheng, pleaded not guilty, according to a March 18 Reuters article. The procuratorate's evidence consisted of six essays that Hu published on the U.S.-based dissident Web site Boxun and two interviews he gave with foreign radio agencies, according to a second March 18 RFA article and a March 19 New York Times article. Although the court portrayed the trial as open, none of Hu's family and friends except for Hu's mother was allowed to attend, and Hu's lawyer Li Fangping was given a limited amount of time to present his defense, according to the first March 18 RFA article. Hu Jia's trial points to inconsistencies in Chinese law and continued criminal procedure violations by public officials, including:

Hu's supporters were not allowed to observe trial proceedings, with some held in police custody and beaten. Hu Jia's mother was the only family member allowed to attend the trial, while his father and wife, Zeng Jinyan, were prohibited from observing the trial because they were listed as prosecution witnesses, according to a March 21 RFA article. Rights defenders, members of the legal community, foreign diplomats, and media representatives were also not allowed to attend because they were not granted entry permits, although Hu's mother noted that there were four empty seats in the courtroom, according to the Reuters article, the March 21, and the second March 18 RFA articles. Officials restricted lawyer Teng Biao's freedom of movement from approximately 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and kept five lawyers, including Jiang Tianyong, Han Yicun, Li Chunfu, and Li Xiongbing, at the Babaoshan police station from the morning until 4:30 p.m, according to the March 18 RFA articles. As reported in the same articles, a public security official beat and intimidated Jiang Tianyong and another lawyer, and did not provide documentation explaining why they were being held in police custody.

Hu's lawyers had limited time to present material at the trial. Li Fangping stated that his first round of argument was restricted to 20 minutes, and that he was not done presenting the defense argument when the court requested that he conclude. Li felt that the amount of time the court allotted to the defense was too short to effectively advocate on Hu Jia's behalf, according to the first March 18 RFA article and a second March 21 RFA article.

Hu was interrogated for 6 to 14 hours at night during the first month of detention and received about 2 hours of sleep during the day. Hu was also permitted to go outdoors only three times since December 27, according to the second March 21 RFA article. Such actions are in violation of Article 25 of the Regulations on Detention Centers of the People's Republic of China, which allows for one to two hours of outdoor exercise every day and adequate sleep for detainees.

It appears under Chinese law that Hu Jia's trial should have been open, as Article 7 of the Organic Law of the People's Courts of the People's Republic of China states that "All cases in the people's courts shall be heard in public, except for those involving state secrets, private affairs of individuals, and the commission of crimes by minors." The trial did not seem to involve state secrets or other exceptions noted above. A February 28, 2006, Dui Hua Foundation press statement observed that "In theory, trials of endangering state security that do not involve trafficking in state secrets are open, but the presiding chief judge enjoys considerable discretion in closing such trials if he or she thinks that state secrets might be discussed in the courtroom or if documents that are themselves state secrets are introduced into evidence."

Li Fangping, in reaction to Hu's wife and father not being allowed to attend the trial, noted that, "I personally feel that this is also a deficiency in China's laws," as officials can make a "record of inquiry" of family members that have no relation to a case. After completing a record, family members are considered possible witnesses for the case. "But the prosecution side doesn't notify [them] to appear in court, so in reality it indirectly deprives the defendant's family of the right to observe the trial," as reported in the first March 18 RFA article.

In his defense, Li Fangping discussed the conflict between the freedom of speech provision (Article 35) in the Constitution and the "inciting subversion of state power" provision (Article 105, Item 2) in the Criminal Law, and noted that cases such as Hu's touched on how to resolve this conflict, especially in the absence of legislative and judicial interpretations. In the first March 18 RFA article, Li further stated, "We also quoted international law standards, and we hope that courts will be even more careful in handling these kinds of cases that involve freedom of speech. It would be best if we could find the boundary line between freedom of speech and endangering state security. If this boundary is not clear, it will obviously violate people's freedom of speech." Li and Hu have agreed that they would not appeal if Hu is convicted, in order to avoid further harassment of family members, according to the first March 21 article.

See previous CECC analyses for additional information on Hu's arrest and detention, and Hu's record of detention, searchable through the CECC's Political Prisoner Database.