Prominent Chinese human rights lawyer and founder of the “New Citizens Movement,” Xu Zhiyong, has been on a hunger strike for 40 days in protest against mistreatment and being deprived of the right to communicate with his family in prison. Xu Zhiyong is currently detained at the Shandong Lunan Prison. Recently, the “Xiamen Meeting Case Concern Group” issued a public letter in both Chinese and English, calling on the international community to pay attention to Xu Zhiyong’s health condition.
According to the letter released by the “Xiamen Meeting Case Concern Group” on November 12th, it stated that Xu Zhiyong, a prominent figure in the Chinese citizen movement and human rights advocacy, has been on a hunger strike for 40 days, yet his basic rights request has not been approved by the Shandong Lunan Prison. The group urged the international community to condemn the inhumane treatment of Xu Zhiyong by the Lunan Prison and called on the prison authorities to stop any related abusive behaviors.
The Xiamen Meeting Case took place on December 7-8, 2019, where a group of citizens and lawyers gathered in Xiamen, Fujian Province. Shortly after, the Chinese authorities established the “12.13 Special Team” and began arresting individuals on the groundless charge of “subverting state power.” Subsequently, on December 26th of the same year, several individuals including Xu Zhiyong were detained.
Born in 1973, Xu Zhiyong is the founder of the democratic advocacy group “Gongmeng,” a human rights lawyer, and a proponent of the “New Citizens Movement.” Xu Zhiyong has been imprisoned three times in 2009, 2013, and 2020 due to his advocacy for non-violent citizen rights resistance.
On April 10, 2023, the Intermediate People’s Court in Linyi City, Shandong Province, sentenced Xu Zhiyong to 14 years in prison on charges of “subverting state power.” Xu Zhiyong remains detained at the Shandong Lunan Prison.
Recently, Teng Biao, a professor at Hunter College of the State University of New York who has previously engaged in legal rights work in China, revealed to Radio Free Asia, “Xu Zhiyong began his hunger strike at the Shandong Lunan Prison on October 4. Following international appeals, on October 29, his family had a meeting with Xu Zhiyong and saw him with a tube for forced feeding. However, the family members still cannot communicate with Xu Zhiyong, so no one knows his current condition.”
Teng Biao further disclosed that Xu Zhiyong’s lawyers had also visited the prison for a meeting but were refused access, citing trivial reasons. The lawyers waited for two days but had to return without seeing Xu Zhiyong. This situation has left Xu Zhiyong unable to convey any messages through his lawyers, making it unclear about his status post-October 29.
He said that some friends and lawyers of Xu Zhiyong had called the Lunan Prison inquiring about his condition, “But the prison denied the hunger strike situation and refused to reveal more details.”
Xu Zhiyong and lawyer Ding Jiaxi were both arrested in the Xiamen Meeting Case and later sentenced to 12 years in prison on charges of “subverting state power.” Ding Jiaxi’s wife, Luo Shengchun, told Radio Free Asia that the arrest and trial of Ding Jiaxi and Xu Zhiyong were illegal, involving secret disappearances, detentions, trials, and judgments without disclosing detailed information to families. Court documents were signed with confidentiality agreements by lawyers.
Luo Shengchun revealed that the immediate trigger for Xu Zhiyong’s hunger strike was the public humiliation he faced in prison, “We know very clearly that the main reason for his hunger strike was because someone tore up a letter from Li Qiaochu to him, which he could not tolerate. As far as we know, Li Qiaochu’s communication rights have not been restored yet.”
She also mentioned that the authorities most likely have control over Li Qiaochu and other family members, preventing them from speaking out and even absurdly denying communication between Li Qiaochu and Xu Zhiyong, categorizing her as a fellow detainee rather than a family member.
According to the information held by the “Xiamen Meeting Case Concern Group,” since July of this year, Xu Zhiyong has also been subjected to psychological abuse in Shandong Lunan Prison through methods like “encirclement.”
Teng Biao explained, “Six individuals are in one cell, and the other five inmates are responsible for monitoring him 24 hours a day. Even going to the bathroom requires their approval. Arbitrary acts of humiliation, threats, and physical punishment are torture methods designed to particularly destroy human dignity.”
Teng Biao analyzed that the prison’s adoption of the “encirclement” technique is related to Xu Zhiyong’s continuous denial of culpability.
Both Luo Shengchun and Teng Biao pointed out that due to the prison severing Xu Zhiyong’s communication with the outside world, the information compiled is based on various fragmented sources. Teng Biao emphasized, “Regardless of who is elected as the U.S. President, we hope that the U.S. State Department, Congress, and departments responsible for democracy and human rights will speak up more for Xu Zhiyong and other prisoners of conscience in China.”
Since Xu Zhiyong began his hunger strike, there has been increased international attention. Nicholas Burns, the U.S. Ambassador to China, issued a statement on October 28 through the X platform on social media urging China to release Xu Zhiyong and abide by its commitments as a United Nations member state to ensure dignified treatment for Xu Zhiyong and all prisoners.
Liesl Gerntholtz, Managing Director of the PEN America’s Free Expression Program, stated to the media, “As he enters his third week of hunger strike, governments worldwide must clearly show support for Xu Zhiyong and other writers and dissenters unjustly imprisoned in China.”
Xu Zhiyong was a recipient of the PEN America Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award in 2020.
Wang Yaqiu, China Researcher at Human Rights Watch, expressed to Radio Free Asia that under Xi Jinping’s crackdown, the situation for human rights lawyers in China is deteriorating, while the international attention they receive is diminishing.
A group of Chinese democracy activists in Los Angeles, California, recently organized a hunger strike and protested outside the Chinese Consulate General. They initiated a relay hunger strike in solidarity with Xu Zhiyong. Geng Guanjun, one of the organizers from the National Committee of the Chinese Democratic Party, stated to Radio Free Asia that their hunger strike activities have been ongoing, with 35 individuals voluntarily participating in the relay hunger strike.
Ren Wei, who participated in the hunger strike on November 12, stated, “I voluntarily fasted for a day in support of Xu Zhiyong. He is risking his life to fight for human rights in China. Those who protest domestically against the regime are our role models. We, overseas individuals, must also take action to support these democratic fighters.”
Geng Guanjun mentioned that since Xu Zhiyong’s conditions have not improved, the National Committee of the Chinese Democratic Party plans to respond to the “Night Ride Kaifeng” event inside China by cycling to the Chinese Consulate in Los Angeles and tearing down the Chinese national flag in front of the consulate in direct response to the prison guards tearing up Xu Zhiyong’s letters.
The “Xiamen Meeting Case Concern Group” called for more people to join the campaign, assisting Xu Zhiyong in realizing his legitimate rights to medical treatment, communication, lawyer visits, among others.