The U.S. Embassy in China originally arranged for human rights lawyers and their families in China to attend the exchange event on U.S. Constitution Day, but before the event was held, many human rights lawyers were placed under plainclothes under house arrest by the Chinese police and could not go out at home. Some human rights defenders said that the Chinese public security had learned of the list of invitations more than once before the embassy notified the event, and warned and removed those on the list in advance.
The U.S. Embassy in China will hold exchange activities at the embassy in Beijing on U.S. Constitution Day. Last year, it invited the human rights lawyer Yu Wensheng’s wife Xu Yan, who was arrested and sentenced for acting in the 709 case, to participate in the exchanges with the then U.S. ambassador to China. Meet Branstad.
Yu Wensheng’s wife Xu Yan posted a message on social platforms on Friday (September 17), saying that at 6:10 in the morning, when she was going to send her son who was in middle school to school, she found that she could not open the door. There were many tall men in Beijing. Guarded outside of her house and refused to let her go out, Xu Yan asked the other party to explain why she was blocking the door.
Xu Yan: “Outside the door of my house, there is a man who is very tall and fat. He is sitting outside my house with a chair. It must be impossible to open the door. There are seven to eight men, all men. You guys. Who is it? He said he is my uncle, and you are from the Beijing police station or that. He said he didn’t know. Today is because I visited lawyer Yu Wensheng in Nanjing yesterday or because of the US Constitution Day, you blocked me Inside my house?”
【United States Constitution Day】
[Beijing National Security Agency bans dissidents from going out like a major enemy]
September 17 is the U.S. Constitution Day. It is understood that the U.S. Embassy in China was originally scheduled to hold activities related to Constitution Day in Beijing today. However, many human rights lawyers and their families in Beijing were missing and blocked at home in the morning.#United States Constitution Day#Rights Lawyer#Kuniyasu pic.twitter.com/UbcqmbbVEG— Radio Free Asia (@RFA_Chinese) September 17, 2021
Xu Yan told this station that one of the people at the door admitted that she was forbidden to go out because today is the US Constitution Day. During her theory with the other party, someone scolded her with foul language and refused to let her send her son to school.
Xu Yan: “In fact, this incident caused another injury to the child. I have told the Beijing police many times to try not to cause harm to my son, because China is also obligated to protect minors, regardless of family or circumstances. People, all Chinese citizens and children, should protect minors. Once again, blocking my door is actually hurting the children. This situation is absolutely intolerable and there is no protection of Chinese flowers.”
Several Chinese human rights lawyers and their families were under house arrest by the authorities
Human rights lawyers Wang Quanzhang and lawyer Li Heping, who were arrested in the 709 incident, had similar experiences. When receiving enquiries from this station, Wang Quanzhang said that starting from Thursday (September 16) evening, many men and women have been sitting outside his house, preventing him from going out with his family. He said that Chinese public security put Chinese citizens under house arrest on U.S. Constitution Day.
Lawyer Li Heping’s wife Wang Yanling also stated that many plainclothes had been guarded outside the building where they lived in the morning. The footage provided by her shows that there were many private cars parked outside her house. The personnel followed closely behind.
Wang Yanling told the station that she was also invited to attend the U.S. Constitution Day event last year, but was taken away by the National Security Agency on the way. However, this year the official has made preparations. As early as the night before the event, she had sent someone to guard her home and her husband was out in the morning. At the time, the guards even stated that Wang Xuanling was not allowed to go out. She described that Beijing’s national security operations have been escalated this year compared to last year.
Wang Yanling: “Last year, I was participating in the U.S. Constitution Day. At Dongfeng Beiqiao Station on Line 14 in Beijing, the police came up as soon as I got out of the station, twisted my shoulders, and two big men pressed me to the ground. , That person is the national security police in Chaoyang District, Beijing. They upgraded this year and blocked my door directly and refused to let me out. Because Li Heping went out early in the morning and walked the dog at 6 o’clock in the morning, the police said Li Heping could go out. , But they said Wang Yanling was determined not to go out.”
It is understood that the U.S. Embassy in China was originally scheduled to hold an event with Constitution Day in Beijing today. In addition to Xu Yan and Wang Yanling, a number of human rights lawyers were taken away or lost contact with the outside world, including human rights lawyers Wang Yu and Tang Jitian. .
Rights defenders say that China Guoan has notified the event arrangements earlier than the embassy or consulate
A Chinese human rights activist under the pseudonym Mr. Zheng accepted the interview. He said that he recently discovered that before the various embassies in China invited them to attend the event, China’s National Security Agency had already known the relevant invitation and contacted them in advance, asking them not to attend the event.
Mr. Zheng: “We will be taken away on sensitive days or when the embassy or consulate has an event. I think the embassy and consulate have their inside lines and the list of invited persons. They (Chinese police) know very well that we Before receiving the invitation, they knew and called us, and we were all worried.”
Mr. Zheng said that whenever there are sensitive days or when the consulate in China has activities, Beijing’s police will put them under house arrest. Recently, they have been taken away more frequently and the risk of speaking up is increasing.
Mr. Zheng: “The current situation is indeed less and less space, more and more tightly controlled, and all aspects, even in terms of security, are also very worrying. There is relatively little room for speech and action. The current state of China speaks out. There are fewer and fewer people, and I hope everyone can understand and support each other.”
Mr. Cheng said that although the risk is greater than in the past, he hopes to fight for the rights and interests of the disadvantaged groups as much as possible while there is still room.
Reporter: Chen Miaoling Editor: Hu Lihan Xu Shuting Web Editor: Rui Zhe