Following his detention on October 4, 2009, Uyghur journalist Gheyret Niyaz has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for "endangering state security." These charges stem from the interview Niyaz gave to foreign reporters regarding the riots that occurred in East Turkestan (aka Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region) on July 5, 2009. During the interview, Niyaz criticized the unequal distribution of wealth in East Turkestan and accused authorities of heavy-handedness in their campaign to fight Uyghur “separatism.” Before his detention, Niyaz had worked at the Xinjiang Economic Daily and had previously been a director of the Xinjiang Legal Daily. He has been given 15 days to appeal his case. He is being denied the right to choose an attorney for himself and will instead be provided one by the state.

Many believe that Niyaz’s punishment was far to harsh for his crime, especially since many who know him all express that he is in fact very pro-Communist party. In his court statement, as reported by his wife Risalet, Niyaz expressed his confusion and disappointment that the government would treat him this way when he was just doing his duty “as a citizen and as a journalist” by making facts about the riot privy to the outside world. Many, such as the Committee to Protect Journalists, are calling for Niyaz’s immediate release including Ilham Tohti, who had founded the website Uighurbiz.cn which Niyaz helped to edit. Tohti himself was detained in July 2009 following the riots on the charge that his website had advocated for the unrest but he was later released on August 2, 2009. Niyaz’s arrest and subsequent harsh treatment is viewed as another example of suppression being brought against the Uyghurs by the Chinese government. Following the riots, the Chinese government also blocked many internet communications including a 6 month blackout and brought even more heightened security following the anniversary of the riots.

Below is the translation of an article written by the prominent author and dissident Yu Jie on July 7th, 2010. Yu Jie was recently interrogated by government officials. This long, but interesting article details the conversation that took place between Mr. Yu and his interrogator. The original Chinese article can be viewed here.

Censorship Everywhere in China-My Second Interrogation by the Chinese Police
-Yu Jie

“The real symbol of China’s openness should be: when asked at a press conference what his favorite book is, Premier Wen Jiabao would show China’s Best Actor Wen Jiabao, a book by Yu Jie, to the audience and say, ‘This book, certainly this one. It is my best reference.”-from Twitter username: “Playboy”

July 5 2010, Officer Li called me at 10 am, notifying me that the officers from the municipal State Security Bureau wanted to talk to me at the police station in my neighborhood at 3 pm that day. I refused, because I was busy finalizing my new book China’s Best Actor Wen Jiabao, which is to be published in half a month. The state security officers get paid for their time “talking to” people like me, since it is part of their job. But I cannot waste my time, and it is certainly my civil right to refuse their demands. (Read more after the jump)

This past Saturday, Tibetan environmentalist Rinchen Samdrup was convicted of "splittism" after leading a campaign against a local policeman involved in poaching. Samdrup was sentenced to five years in prison, and he has been given ten days to appeal the conviction.

Before his arrest, Samdrup was the head of an environmental NGO that operated in the Tibet Autonomous Region near the Sichuan border. The organization worked to fight pollution, poaching, and deforestation with the help of nearby villages, and domestic organizations within China as well as larger international conservation groups lauded Samdrup's work.  Samdrup himself was arrested in August 2009, however.  According to his daughter, Samdrup was subjected to frequent sleep deprivation among other methods of torture while in detention.  And his lawyer, Xia Jun, stated that he had not been allowed to meet with Samdrup since January.

On June 28, democracy activist Liu Xianbin was arrested in Suining city in southern Sichuan for “inciting subversion of state power.” This came after Liu’s recent release from prison in November 2008 after already serving a sentence for “subversion of state power,” a very similar crime. This previous sentence began in 1999, totaling 10 years by the time of his release. However, despite this arrest, Liu returned to promoting democracy and human rights activism and has become an important figure in the activist community in Sichuan. Renee Xia, director of the Chinese Human Rights Defenders, believes that Liu's prominent role led to his recent arrest, and shows that the government is growing increasingly nervous about activism in the province. It was reported that approximately 14 policeman were involved in Liu’s arrest, during which they raided his house for computers, credit cards, and copies of articles that he had written for foreign websites. The following day security officials harassed Liu’s wife and his 13 year-old daughter.  

Karma Samdrup, a prominent Tibetan business man, has received the maximum 15 year sentence from a court in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) on charges of looting cultural artifacts. In addition to 15 years, Samdrup’s lawyer Pu Zhiqiang stated that he also received five years’ deprivation of his political rights and a 10,000 Yuan (1,500 US) fine.  Karma Samdrup immediately denied the charges and has 10 days to appeal according to Pu. Throughout the trial and even after the verdict was read, Karma Samdrup’s wife, Dolkar Tso, was not allowed to speak or meet with her husband. (Read more after the jump)

This Thursday Rinchen Samdrup, an award-winning environmentalist from Tibet was scheduled to go on trial for “incitement to split the country,” yet had his trial abruptly canceled on Sunday. He, along with his younger brother Chime Namgyal, were arrested this past August for alleging that officials in eastern Tibet were poaching endangered species. Unlike his brother’s postponement, Chime Namgyal is believed to be serving a 21-month prison sentence in a labor camp on the charges of “harming national security.” A third brother, Karma Samdrup, was arrested on January 3^rd while visiting his brothers in jail. The charges against him date back to a 1998 charge of "dealing in looted antiquities" but these were never mentioned until recently, leading many to believe that it was brought up due to the fact that he had been supporting his brothers’ cause. It is still not clear whether the trial of Richen Samdrup has been cancelled indefinitely due to problems with evidence or if this is simply a postponement; calls to the court for comment went unanswered. Karma Samdrup’s wife, Zhenga Cuomao reported that her husband found his brothers to be in poor health when he visited them, especially Chime who he felt “might not be able to live much longer.” Karma Samdrup’s lawyer, Pu Zhiqiang, was optimistic for acquittal but believed that with the current state of affairs his own role in bringing that about would be limited at best. 

After waiting almost a year following protests by both local Tibetans and the international community calling for the release of the well-known Tibetan monk Tenzin Delek Rinpoche, his sisters were allowed to meet with him after being informed of the location by the government just 2 days before the meeting was to take place. Both the head of the prison and the prison’s doctor told Sonam Dekyi and Dolkar that their brother was suffering from bone, heart and blood pressure problems, in addition to a fall that was most likely brought about by his illnesses. The sisters informed Tenzin Delek Rinpoche that they would continue to write letters to the government on his behalf, adding to the 26 he himself had already sent.

Tenzin Delek Rinpoche has been protesting his detention since he was arrested in connection with several bombings in southwestern China. Despite being sentenced to death in December 2002 for the crime, Tenzin Delek Rinpoche  was given a two-year reprieve and later had his sentence commuted to life in prison on January 26, 2005. His relative Lobsang Dhondup, who was charged at the same time, was executed almost immediately following the sentence. The ability of his sisters to visit him is thought to be in direct correlation with the promises made by the Chinese government in light of dozens of Tibetan youths staging protests in Lithang in early December 2009 to appeal for Tenzin Delek Rinpoche's release, leading to dozens of detentions and clashes with police. In addition to this, Human Rights Watch is continuing to push for his release immediately pending a new trial conforming to international standards of justice.

According to several sources, including PEN American Center and this LA Times article, renowned Chinese author and dissident Liu Xiaobo was transferred on May 24, 2010 from a detention center in Beijing to Jinzhou Prison in Liaoning Province. As Liaoning is reportedly Liu Xiaobo's home province (though according to China Geeks even that fact is unclear), it was predicted that Liu would be moved to a prison in Liaoning at some point. What is surprising is that it has taken this long for the transfer to take place, as Liu's wife, Liu Xia, previously assumed he would be moved following the Spring Festival in February. Liu Xia was not informed of her husband's transfer until May 30.

Liu Xia, who remains in Beijing, was able to visit her husband in Jinzhou Prison on June 3, according to Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD). The couple was only allowed to visit for one hour, and they were watched by prison guards throughout the visit. Following her visit, Liu Xia reported that her husband is allowed to leave his cell twice a day, is allowed to write and to read books, provided the books are approved by prison officials. CHRD also said that Liu Xiaobo has complained of stomach problems, but it is unclear whether he has received medical attention. Liu is not required to labor as most of the Laogai's 3-5 million prisoners are. Perhaps as such a prominent dissident, officials probably think it is better for Liu Xiaobo to remain in solitary confinement, rather than take the risk of allowing Liu Xiaobo to mingle with other prisoners and spread his "subversive" thinking.

After being detained on March 28, 2009 and later sentenced to five years in prison in February of this year for “inciting subversion of state power,” Tan Zuoren’s appeal has been denied.  On June 9, the Sichuan Provincial High People’s Court announced during a twelve minute hearing that it was upholding its verdict of five years in prison and three years of deprivation of political rights against Tan Zuoren.  Tan's independent investigation into the collapse of school buildings that led to over 5,000 student deaths during the Sichuan earthquake disaster brought about his conviction.  Tan had discovered that the collapses were largely due to shoddy school construction with many buildings lacking the supports or emergency exits necessary to prevent such a catastrophe in the event of a natural disaster. The apparent gross violation of specific building codes has caused much of the public to call on the government to do a full investigation, but so far there has been little if any effort from Beijing to pursue the matter further.  (Read more after the jump)

Dhondup Wangchen, the Tibetan filmmaker "who is serving a six-year term for making [the] documentary ["Leaving Fear Behind"]," is reportedly in failing health after he contracted hepatitis B in police custody.  Making matters worse, Wangchen has been transfered to a "labor camp in Qinghai Province where conditions are thought to be especially harsh."

China's high-profile dissidents have a tendency to disappear, and Wangchen is no different.  Wangchen's "friends and family [are] increasingly dispirited by their inability to obtain any official information about his health of his whereabouts." 

This news comes as a Chinese court "handed down a suspended death sentence to a Tibetan man accused of taking part in the riots that ravaged the Tibetan capital more than two years ago."