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https://scmp.com/news/china/article/1987753/open-letter-xi-uphold-rule-law-and-release-unlawfully-detained-rights
China

An open letter to Xi: uphold the rule of the law and release unlawfully detained rights lawyers

Request marks first anniversary of unprecedented crackdown on civil rights on the mainland

Zhao Wei, a 24-year-old assistant to rights lawyer Li Heping accused of subversion, had been released on bail, according to the public security bureau in Tianjin/ Photo: SCMP Pictures

Lawyer groups from around the world have called on President Xi Jinping to honour his pledge to protect the rule of law as they marked the one-year anniversary of a crackdown on civil society.

Xi should release all people unlawfully detained in the sweeping round-up and ensure the two dozen facing charges were given access to their chosen counsel, they said in an open letter.

“We call on you as the president of the People’s Republic of China to dedicate your personal attention to ensure that the country honours its commitments to the constitution, national law [and] the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers,” said the letter, which was signed by more than a dozen overseas bar associations and lawyers’ groups.

It also asked authorities to stop interfering with the families of the detainees as they sought legal assistance and to ensure adequate medical treatment for their loved ones and visitation rights.

More than 300 lawyers, legal assistants, activists and their relatives were detained or questioned in the “709” campaign, named for the date it began.

The top legal authorities ... have completely ignored the law Chang Boyang, lawyer

Chang Boyang, a civil rights lawyer, said attempts to win the release or better treatment for his colleagues had been “very tough”.

“I felt very disappointed because the top legal authorities, who should have strictly abided by the law, have – in fact – completely ignored the law in handling the issue” he told the Sunday Morning Post. “We cannot visit those detainees and we don’t know at all whether their situation is getting better or worse,” he said.

This photo taken on July 4 shows the wives of human rights lawyers detained almost a year ago wearing the names of their husbands as they meet diplomats near an office of the Supreme People's Procuratorate in Beijing. Photo: AFP
This photo taken on July 4 shows the wives of human rights lawyers detained almost a year ago wearing the names of their husbands as they meet diplomats near an office of the Supreme People's Procuratorate in Beijing. Photo: AFP

Separately, the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute issued an open letter calling for “the immediate and unconditional release” of all lawyers detained since last July.

“Such attacks violate the fundamental rights of both lawyers and their clients, risk causing irreparable damage to the independence of the Chinese legal profession and undermine the rule of law,” it said in a statement.

The public security bureau in Tianjin said on Thursday that Zhao Wei, a 24-year-old assistant to rights lawyer Li Heping accused of subversion, had been released on bail. Selfie photos and a “confession” letter were posted on Zhao’s social media account after her release, but there was widespread doubt over their authenticity. Public concern over her safety grew after rumours were posted online suggesting she might have been sexually harassed while in detention.

Many of my friends and my clients have been detained Yu Wensheng, lawyer

The Communist Party vowed at the Fourth Plenum in 2014 to make rule of law a centrepiece of its governing. But Yu Wensheng, a Beijing rights lawyer, said the tenet was just a slogan, and the international community should exert more pressure on Beijing to follow through on its promise. “Many of my friends and my clients have been detained, but I cannot visit them. We are in danger and may be detained at any time,” he said.