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Beijing yesterday defended the controversial jailing of milk scandal hero Zhao Lianhai  that has caused outrage around the world.
A day before the deadline for Zhao to appeal, the statement issued by Xinhua's Hong Kong branch also made clear it was addressing the concerns raised in the city specifically. 
Zhao, whose son was sickened by melamine-tainted milk, was jailed for two and a half years on November 10 for 'provoking quarrels and making trouble' after he gave up his job to  become an activist to help similar  victims' families seek justice.
The sentence sparked a public outcry in Hong Kong where 28 local deputies to the National People's Congress (NPC) issued a joint petition calling for Zhao's release last week, while the city's lawmakers from across the political spectrum also backed Zhao.
Citing information provided by Daxing District People's Court,  Xinhua defended the court ruling on the grounds that Zhao continued his activism after his son recovered.
The five-year-old boy was given free hospital treatment and recovered in October 2008, a month after he was diagnosed with kidney stones.
The government also paid compensation to Zhao 'on the grounds of humanitarianism', Xinhua said. 
Families said earlier 'minor cases' such as Zhao's were paid 2,000 yuan (HK$2,332).  
'From October 2008 to September 2009, Zhao, although his son has already recovered from kidney stones, still made use of this problem to organise, provoke and rally people to make trouble by chanting slogans and gathering illegally in the districts of Daxing, Fengtai  and Dongcheng  in Beijing city and Shijiazhuang city , Hebei  . 
'Such actions have seriously disrupted the social order of these areas,' Xinhua said.
It said Zhao was also sentenced for 'making use of another incident as an excuse to rally some people to cause trouble outside a police station in Beijing and disrupt the traffic' in August 2009. This referred to Zhao's actions to help a rape victim to report to the police.
Hong Kong-based China Law  expert Professor Ong Yew-kim said the report was rare.
'I am convinced that it aims to test the water to see whether the report will trigger further criticisms,  especially when numerous NPC  deputies and the members of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference have voiced their disappointment with the verdict,' he said.
Mainland affairs analyst Johnny Lau Yui-siu said the move was an attempt to confuse the public by issuing official propaganda before Zhao's appeal. 
Zhao's lawyer Li Fangping  said yesterday the Xinhua statement illustrated the government's definition of the nature of Zhao's case. 
Li said since last Saturday Zhao's wife, Li Xuemei  and another defence lawyer Peng Jian  could not be reached. A woman answering the phone of Li Xuemei yesterday said: 'Li is not allowed to use her mobile for the time being. I am assigned to use the phone on her behalf.'
Zhao's appeal was sent to the court by legal expert Xu Zhiyong after he found the appeal letter, signed by Zhao, in Peng's office. 
It remains unknown if the court will accept the appeal. Xu, in an open statement, said the Xinhua dispatch showed the agency had no conscience nor legal concept.  Xinhua also dismissed criticisms the sentence was too harsh and said the maximum penalty for the charge of 'provoking quarrels and making trouble' was five years. 
It also tried to discredit Zhao by saying he had been detained for 10 days for intruding at a residence in 1990 and jailed for two years in 1995 for injuring another person.
But Lau said the Zhao's previous criminal record was irrelevant. 'Even if Zhao's previous crime record was true, it should not be blended with this case in discussion,' Lau said.
NPC deputy Miriam Lau Kin-yee said the co-signed letter from the  local delegates was meant to appeal for mitigation. 'We have no intention of challenging the verdict of his case,' she said.  
Lew Mon-hung, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference who bought full-page advertisements in several news- papers calling for Zhao's immediate release, said the press release from Xinhua  failed to convince the public and was only trying to defend the court's judgment.



Beijing defends jailing of hero milk activist Zhao