Opinion | Beijing black jail 'releases thousands of petitioners'

A notorious Beijing detention centre known to illegally hold petitioners released thousands of prisoners on Tuesday, according to a source and media reports. 

Many activists view the release as a signal from China’s new leadership to further crack down on the so-called “black jails”, which detain people who come to Beijing to petition the central government for injustices they have suffered and their local governments and law enforcement weren't able to resolve.  

This came days after the Beijing Youth Daily reported that a local court had convicted 10 people of illegally detaining petitioners from another city, and sentenced them to jail terms of up to 18 months. The paper has since withdrawn the story, and other media outlets reported that the case was still under trial. 

Petitioners who don’t trust local authorities and seek justice in Beijing are often viewed as an embarrassment by provincial governments. In many cases, they are rounded up by thugs hired by provincial authorities, held in illegal jails, or sent home.

Shen Zhihua, a native of eastern Zhejiang province, told the Post in a phone interview that she petitioned in front of state television CCTV on Tuesday morning. The police arrested her and sent her to a detention centre in Beijing’s Jiujing village. She was freed about 7.30pm yesterday evening. 

“I estimated the number to be 70,000,” she said, referring to the number of fellow prisoners released last night.