Human Rights Watch calls on China to free detained labour activists
- Around 30 students, factory workers and student Marxists remain in detention after summer protests at Jasic International in Shenzhen
- Workers were fired for trying to form autonomous trade union
Human Rights Watch on Tuesday called on the Chinese government to set free a group of over 30 labour activists, factory workers, college students and trade union officials detained in a nationwide crackdown launched in mid-2018.
In July, workers at Jasic International, a welding-machinery manufacturer in southern Shenzhen city, staged protests after being fired by their employer while attempting to form an autonomous labour union.
The incident has sparked waves of detentions by the Chinese authorities followed by further activist demonstrations from supporters from across the country, including a group of student activists who identify as Marxists from top universities.
Those who have been “arbitrarily detained or forcibly disappeared” should be immediately released, Human Rights Watch said in a statement.
“It’s ironic that a self-proclaimed socialist government is cracking down on young Marxists,” Yaqiu Wang, New York-based China researcher at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.
“International labour organisations and universities around the world should show solidarity with Chinese workers and students and speak out against China’s suppression of labour activism,” Wang said.