Chinese court jails author of Tiananmen report: lawyer
Liu Shaoming was detained after describing his involvement in the 1989 pro-democracy Tiananmen crackdown
Paramilitary policemen stand guard as the Chinese national flag is raised on Beijing's Tiananmen Square on June 4, 2012, marking the 23rd anniversary of the military crackdown on the square of a student pro-democracy movement. PHOTO: REUTERS
BEIJING:
A prominent Chinese labour activist was sentenced Friday to four and a half years in prison for "inciting subversion" through a written account of the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown, his lawyer told AFP.
Liu Shaoming, a former factory worker, was detained in southern Guangdong province in May 2015 after describing his involvement in the pro-democracy movement on a US website. Liu's lawyer, Wu Kuiming, told AFP the verdict was announced by the Guangzhou Intermediate People's Court.
"His crime is 'inciting subversion of state power,'" Wu said. "The evidence is some online articles he wrote to recall the June 4 event."
Wu said they will appeal the court decision. Several Chinese rights advocates have been jailed for trying to keep alive the memory of the Tiananmen Square pro-democracy movement that was crushed by the military.
Hundreds of civilians - over 1,000 by some estimates - are believed to have died in the crackdown. Liu, who was featured earlier this year in the documentary "We the Workers," travelled to Beijing to join the student-led demonstrations. According to Amnesty International, he was also a member of China's first independent trade union.
"This is a most callous and unjust verdict against Liu Shaoming," William Nee, China researcher at Amnesty International, said in a statement.
"He is a prisoner of conscience and must be immediately and unconditionally released. All that Liu Shaoming is guilty of is the legitimate exercise of his freedom of expression."
A prominent Chinese labour activist was sentenced Friday to four and a half years in prison for "inciting subversion" through a written account of the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown, his lawyer told AFP.
Liu Shaoming, a former factory worker, was detained in southern Guangdong province in May 2015 after describing his involvement in the pro-democracy movement on a US website. Liu's lawyer, Wu Kuiming, told AFP the verdict was announced by the Guangzhou Intermediate People's Court.
"His crime is 'inciting subversion of state power,'" Wu said. "The evidence is some online articles he wrote to recall the June 4 event."
Wu said they will appeal the court decision. Several Chinese rights advocates have been jailed for trying to keep alive the memory of the Tiananmen Square pro-democracy movement that was crushed by the military.
Hundreds of civilians - over 1,000 by some estimates - are believed to have died in the crackdown. Liu, who was featured earlier this year in the documentary "We the Workers," travelled to Beijing to join the student-led demonstrations. According to Amnesty International, he was also a member of China's first independent trade union.
"This is a most callous and unjust verdict against Liu Shaoming," William Nee, China researcher at Amnesty International, said in a statement.
"He is a prisoner of conscience and must be immediately and unconditionally released. All that Liu Shaoming is guilty of is the legitimate exercise of his freedom of expression."