China: Secret trials of #MeToo journalist and labour rights activist begin in Guangzhou

The trial of two prominent Chinese rights activists who have been in detention since 2021 are due to begin and they are reportedly expected to appear before a judge in a closed-door hearing, on Friday (September 22). The case has attracted widespread attention to Beijing’s effort to dismantle and repress what remains of the country’s civil society.

The trial is being held for independent journalist and rights activist Huang Xueqin who covered China’s #MeToo movement and labour rights activist Wang Jianbing. Both weredetained by Chinese authorities in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou in September 2021.

The detention also came shortly before Huang was due to move to the United Kingdom to study.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

What has the duo been accused of?

A month after their detention, they were charged with “inciting subversion of state power” which typically carries a sentence of up to five years but can be raised if the case is deemed severe. Huang and Wang, according to their supporters will be tried at the Guangzhou Intermediate People’s Court, reported CNN.

The roads around the courthouses appeared to be closed to public access on Friday morning, said a report by the Guardian, citing their supporters.

Huang who also covered the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong in 2019 as a journalist was later detained in Guangzhou and prevented from attending the postgraduate programme at the University of Hong Kong.

Huang was released in 2020 and awarded the Chevening scholarship by the British Foreign Office in 2021, and was set to attend the University of Sussex for her master’s degree in autumn.

The UK-based university said that they remain “deeply concerned” about her “safety and her wellbeing” and “consistently raised her case in meetings with the UK government and in correspondence with the British embassy in China.”

A ‘complete sham’

Huang and Wang reportedly organised weekly meetings at the latter’s apartment for like-minded progressives, to discuss issues such as feminism, LGBTQ+ rights and labour issues, but also to watch films and play board games.

According to the United States-based, Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD), nearly 70 of their acquaintances have been interrogated by the police, several of them even reportedly forced to leave Guangzhou.

“They were trying to rebuild a network, to bring together every isolated individual,” said a report by the Guardian citing a friend, who regularly attended what was described as casual meetings. “We never thought that this was dangerous, or even offensive to the government,” they added.

The pair has also held largely incommunicado while advocates have claimed that they have been subjected to secret interrogations, torture and ill-treatment.

“We don’t know for sure what the substance of the Chinese government’s case against Huang Xueqin and Wang Jianbing is, but we can be certain that the process will be a complete sham,” said William Nee, a research and advocacy coordinator at CHRD, as quoted by CNN.

He added, “Huang has not seen a lawyer of her choice in two years of detention. They were both reportedly subjected to prolonged interrogations and police frequently would wake Huang up in the middle of the night and start interrogations.”

On Thursday, dozens of civil society groups, including Amnesty International and Reporters Without Borders (RSF), released a joint statement calling for the duo’s “immediate and unconditional” release.

WATCH WION LIVE HERE

You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.