Tiananmen spirit label protesters given suspended jail terms by Chinese court after three years in detention

Two activists who were arrested in 2016 were found guilty over baijiu labels urging people to remember deadly 1989 crackdown, while two others face trial this week

Former soldier Fu Hailu was found guilty of ‘picking quarrels and provoking trouble’ in tightly guarded hearing, according to his wife

Reading Time:2 minutes

Fu Hailu was found guilty of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble”. Photo: Handout

Published: 7:00am, 3 Apr 2019Updated: 5:28am, 5 Jun 2019

Two Chinese activists who were detained three years ago for making a veiled protest over the 1989 Tiananmen military crackdown have been given suspended jail sentences.

Fu Hailu, a Sichuan native, and three others had been held since 2016 for advertising bottles of a traditional spirit with labels that urged people to remember the student-led movement.

His wife Liu Tianyan, who attended the trial, said that on Monday Chengdu Intermediate People’s Court handed Fu a three-year jail term suspended for five years for “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” – an offence commonly used by police and prosecutors to control dissidents.

Another defendant, Zhang Juanyong was sentenced to three years in prison suspended for four years on Tuesday, she added.

The trials of two other defendants in the case, Luo Fuyu and Chen Bing, are scheduled for later this week.

Zhang Juanyong was given a three-year sentence, suspended for four years. Photo: Handout