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.  

Since his arrest, hundreds of Liu's supporters have signed an open letter to the government denouncing his detention and calling for his immediate release. Well-known lawyer Mingxian Chen is reportedly going to be representing Liu’s defense. Liu has been charged for writing articles on human rights and democracy, making contacts with other democratic rights defenders and also becoming one of the original 303 signatories of Charter 08 document published in December 2008 to demand more democracy and respect for human rights. This could be considered a crime since his 1999 conviction includes 3 years deprivation of political rights after his release. Liu also took part in the pro-democracy movement in 1989.