Convictions of blind activist, journalist Zhao upheld
The new trial of Chen Guangcheng ended with exactly the same sentence handed down by a former trial that was overturned due to abuses of the rights of the accused. Meanwhile, an appeals court sentenced journalist Zhao Yan to three years jail for fraud, without allowing him to present any proof.
Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) The prison sentences handed down to a blind activist, Chen Guangcheng, and a journalist, Zhao Yan, have been upheld on appeal. In both cases, lawyers denounced gross violations of the basic rights of the accused.
In August, Zhao was condemned to three years in prison for defrauding an official of Jilin of 2,500 US dollars by falsely promising to help him avoid work in a labour camp. Yesterday, the Beijing High Court confirmed the sentence in a ruling described by defence lawyer Guan Anping as "highly regrettable".
Guan said this was a "verdict without a trial", adding that "they did not respect the criminal law", not least because witnesses and other evidence presented by the defence were ruled as inadmissible. Ultimately, the conviction was based only on written statements by the official, his relatives and friends.
But observers recall that Zhao was arrested in September 2004, on charges of leaking state secrets abroad, after he had contributed to an article published in a New York daily. This article foretold Jiang Zemin's retirement from the position of chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Communist Party, which paved the way for the assumption of full leadership by President Hu Jintao. Previously, Zhao had denounced instances of poor governance, for example, the time when the mayor of Tangshan grabbed compensation earmarked for thousands of peasants who had been dispossessed and forced to relocate because of the construction of a dam in Hebei.
The United States has often called for the release of Zhao, who was detained for nearly two years before being brought before a judge. Meanwhile, the charge of leaking state secrets disappeared, to be replaced by accusations of fraud.
Also yesterday, a court "confirmed" the sentence of four years and three months in prison handed down to a blind activist, Chen Guangcheng, for damaging property and disrupting public traffic. Chen was originally sentenced in August but an appeals court overturned the ruling due to serious procedural violations. The first trial was the target of an extensive international campaign, which described it as a "farce". Chen had denounced hundreds of cases of forced abortion and sterilization by health authorities of Linyi city, Shandong, undertaken to enforce the birth control policy.
Chen's lawyers have protested against the verdict and complained about a climate of intimidation, with the "kidnapping" of key witnesses who disappeared shortly before the trial.
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