Woman who complained about graft is forced to abort, then arrested
Li Fengfei was forced to abort at 18 weeks in the city of Bijie. Her son died and her life was in danger for about a month. Just out of the hospital, she was arrested by Public Security. A Christian lawyer has taken up her case, noting that it all started after she refused to falsify some documents to steal money from the state.

Bijie (AsiaNews) - The Public Security Bureau in Guizhou Province has arrested Li Fengfei on charges of "fraud and embezzlement". She is the woman who went public with the fact that she was forced to undergo an abortion that brought her close to death. ChinaAid has confirmed Li's story, which AsiaNews had already reported.

Li Guisheng, a Christian lawyer and head of the Hengquan law firm, on 5 September announced on Weibo, a popular Chinese microblogging site, that he was willing to defend her in court.

"Hengquan Law Firm of Guizhou has formally accepted the authorization of Li Fengfei and will provide all-out legal service for her. Yesterday, the lawyers met with her at Jinsha County Detention Center and they talked about the child. She was both sad and angry and felt insulted. She is in pain and wept greatly," the statement said.

According to the law firm, Li's forced abortion and arrest were an act of vengeance by the authorities after she refused to take part in a scam against the State.

Li, who comes from a Hmong peasant family, has already a child. She worked as an accountant at a municipal bank in Bijie. Her boss, a relative of several municipal officials, asked her to falsify some documents to steal money, but she refused. And this, the lawyers say, "is the real reason and cause of Li's problems."

What the case shows is that China's one-child policy continues to be a tool not only of repression and violation of human rights of the Chinese population, but also as a method to foster corruption and embezzlement in the Party and government.

According to a dissident lawyer, in 2012 alone, fines imposed for violating this law totalled about US$ 2.5 billion, which cannot, however, be traced.