TAIPEI - After being detained for 37 days, the girlfriend of Chinese democracy activist Xu Zhiyong, Li Qiaochu, was arrested on suspicion of "inciting subversion of state power." Supervise the hospital). In this regard, many of Li Qiaochu’s friends called her wronged. They believed that apart from being punishable by Xu Zhiyong’s case, Li Qiaochu was also because of the courage to expose corruption in the Chinese prison and to break the silence and insist on Xu Zhiyong and his own dignity in accordance with the law. It was the Chinese authorities
who attacked and retaliated against the protection of the rights. They said that the authorities detained Li Qiaochu to silence her from now on, and it was very likely that she would become a hostage for persecuting Xu Zhiyong to confess guilt in the future.
Luo Shengchun, the wife of former human rights lawyer Ding Jiaxi, described the accusations and imprisonment Li Qiaochu faced with "inciting subversion of state power caused by a steamed bun".
A mantou's crime of subverting power
Luo Shengchun, who lives in the United States, told the Voice of America that for more than a year, she and Li Qiaochu have actively exposed Ding Jiaxi and Xu Zhiyong who were arrested in the "12.26 Xiamen Party" case through online platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. The truth about the abuse suffered in prison: including eating only one steamed bun a day, etc. She believes that this is a protection of rights in accordance with the law, and there is nothing illegal or criminal.
She said: Before Li Qiaochu was arrested in early February this year, “Beijing police officers interviewed her eight times and found no reason to arrest her. Because she did nothing, except to make a voice on the Internet, and did not commit any crimes. Therefore, they (at one time) could not find a reason to apprehend her. However, just after the lawyer met with Xu Zhiyong, she sued the Linshu County Detention Center (Linyi City, Shandong Province) for harsh food and high prices, such as naked corruption. , And she was immediately captured by them. This is obviously naked revenge."
On February 2 this year, Li Qiaochu formally sued the Linshu County Detention Center for food far below national standards and expensive meals. At the same time, she complained about the prosecutors stationed in the detention center for failing to perform their supervisory duties. She filed a complaint. It has been officially signed by the Linyi City People’s Procuratorate.
Publicly expose torture in prison
Luo Shengchun said that on February 5 this year, the night before Li Qiaochu's arrest, he was still staying up late to sort out the content of Xu Zhiyong's second video meeting with the lawyer on the same day. Li Qiaochu tweeted that Xu Zhiyong was severely tortured during his transfer to "designated residential surveillance (designated residence)" in Yantai, Shandong at the end of April 2020, including "(2020) beginning in mid-May for more than a week. (Xu Zhiyong) He was tied to an iron chair for more than ten hours a day, his limbs were fixed, and he was struggling to breathe. During this period, he was limited to drinking water, only one small steamed bun was provided for each meal, and he was hungry and thirsty every day. He was wearing a black headgear and Xu Zhiyong had to wear a heavy motorcycle helmet."
Luo Shengchun said that she believes that the Linyi City Public Security Bureau's retaliation is particularly serious because when they exposed the illegal torture of "One Mantou" at the beginning of this year, the prison authorities actually intensified the persecution, including restricting Xu Zhiyong and Ding Jiaxi during the Spring Festival. People shopping. She said that the food provided by the prison was not only expensive but also of poor quality. For example, the fruits Ding Jiaxi bought were rotten, the salted duck eggs were extremely salty, and the meat preservatives were too heavy, which made it difficult for Ding Jiaxi to swallow. He was only allowed to let the air out for half an hour, with very little activity. In addition, Luo Shengchun said that 16-18 prisoners are held in each cell, and the basic sanitary conditions are extremely poor. In addition, harsh meals and chronic malnutrition have made Ding Jiaxi's leg swelling sequelae caused by sitting on a tiger stool before, and he still cannot heal.
Imprisonment without jurisdiction
She said that when those in power chose to imprison Xu Zhiyong, Ding Jiaxi, and Li Qiaochu in Linyi, there were inherent violations of jurisdiction, because all three of them had household registrations in Beijing, and the "Xiamen Gathering" case took place in Linyi. Irrelevant.
In December 2019, Xu Zhiyong and Ding Jiaxi faced charges of "inciting subversion of state power" for attending a gathering of 21 people including lawyers, scholars, and citizens in Xiamen (called the "Xiamen gathering"). Including Ding Jiaxi, citizens Dai Zhenya, Zhang Zhongshun, and others were arrested one after another within a month after the meeting, while Xu Zhiyong was also arrested in Guangzhou in mid-February 2020 after several months of fleeing. Li Qiaochu is Xu Zhiyong's girlfriend, but did not participate in the "Xiamen Party." Only because of Xu Zhiyong’s escape, Li Qiaochu was summoned for 24 hours on December 31, 2019. With Xu Zhiyong’s arrest, she was also "designated prison" for 4 months from February to June last year. He was not released on bail pending trial until mid-June.
Luo Shengchun asserted that the Chinese authorities detained all three in Linyi, which is more than 600 kilometers away from Beijing, in order to cut off all contact between the parties and the outside world, and "toss" defense lawyers and family members, creating all possible obstacles for them.
In addition to accusing the Linyi police of being "shameless," Luo Shengchun also said that the CCP has now arrested even innocent people like Li Qiaochu and charged her with serious crimes such as "inciting subversion of state power" and endangering national security. Unscrupulous "arbitrary arrest".
Arbitrary power
She said: "The official approval of the arrest of Li Qiaochu" released the message: I am the government, who am I afraid of? You people, I will arrest you at will. I don’t want to listen to what you say. I don’t like to hear it. I will lock you up. I will convict you of inciting the country to subvert political power and lock you up. It is very, very vicious to let you not even see the lawyer. I feel that on this issue, I will spare no effort to speak up for the leaders. "
Since Li Qiaochu was detained in early February, her lawyer Li Guobei has applied for a meeting but received an official reply of "no approval" in early March. Therefore, even the lawyers have no way of knowing why Li Qiaochu is currently being held in the supervision hospital of Linyi City People's Hospital, her food and clothing conditions, as well as the usual depression medicines and care.
The Voice of America called Li Guobei but has not responded so far. According to Li Qiaochu's friends, her lawyers and family members may be worried about Li Qiaochu's treatment and safety in prison. They all expressed their desire to keep a low profile and reluctant to be interviewed.
In this regard, Luo Shengchun also said that Li Qiaochu's lawyers and parents are very low-key, and they don't seem to want outsiders to speak out, especially to reject foreign support. She said that she understood the anxiety and helplessness of family members in China.
Luo Shengchun said: "I think this country, alas! It's terrifying. I now feel that all people are living in fear, living in fear, not daring to speak, and being involuntarily, so I recognize this status quo, and Refusing foreign aid and refusing others to speak for her is very scary."
Since Li Qiaochu has been diagnosed with depression since mid-2019, the outside world is now highly concerned about whether Linyi prison authorities provide Li Qiaochu with the medicines and medical treatments needed regularly, and the imprisonment environment may bring about her mental and physical conditions. Negative impact.
The Voice of America called the Linyi Detention Center and the Public Security Bureau, hoping to learn about Li Qiaochu's current situation, but both the detention center and the Public Security Bureau refused to be interviewed, and the number of the Propaganda Department provided by the Public Security Bureau was repeatedly unanswered.
Guilty in defending rights according to law?
In addition, Li Qiaochu’s two friends said in an interview with VOA that apart from revealing the torture of Xu Zhiyong and his invisibility to the authorities, Li Qiaochu has the courage to disclose the illegal treatment he has received over the past year through the Internet. , These are likely to make the authorities feel "tricky", and anxious to silence her.
A male friend of Li Qiaochu, who did not want to be named, said in an interview with Voice of America that since last June, Li Qiaochu has insisted on public speaking, which makes the authorities feel "tricky." He said that her resistance had been repeatedly warned, threatened, and even repeatedly summoned by the authorities many times. He hoped that she would stop and silence her voice. During the period, the authorities also asked Li Qiaochu's parents to look at her at home or use various methods to stop her from speaking out, but Li Qiaochu has always insisted on not giving in.
The male friend said: "She is brave and determined, and she has accumulated courage in action. Courage is not innate but is slowly accumulated. Resistance action is also a process of self-healing for her."
In fact, Li Qiaochu's courage was acquired. In mid-2019, she still professed to be a person who "hidden when things happen", but the experience of defending rights for herself and her political prisoner boyfriend Xu Zhiyong over the past year has cultivated her persistence and courage.
Li Qiaochu once wrote: "When I was summoned, when I was being followed, when I was interviewed, when I was designated as a prison, those experiences always taught me to grow and be strong."
Self-healing through vocalization
Although she knows that she is "weak and light" and may go to jail, Li Qiaochu once said that she is fearless and insists on not being a silent person. She also called on everyone to "break the silence and face the fear" in order to "maintain their own self." Dignity and independent space reduce the crushing and harm of power to individuals."
She once wrote: “I’m so lonely that I have to speak up, and so lonely that I may not be able to speak again at any time. Who else can relay?... Telling details, traumas, and weaknesses, those who avoid talking and not telling them are exactly what they are afraid of us to do."
She also asked: "We are oppressed by the system. Each of us has participated in the construction of this system in different ways, but we were unable to make passive resistance. Our obedience enables those who actively work for this system to be able to Do whatever you want, a space of evil is formed, how can we escape from it?"
A male friend of Li Qiaochu said that Li Qiaochu had suffered verbal and physical humiliation during the four months he was "designated prison." For example, being forced to "obey" writing confession materials, or being reprimanded or even begging for vomiting after a meal due to emotional problems; Li Qiaochu was also grateful for the little favor of the National Security Administration and fruit delivery. The so-called "Stockholm syndrome" of the victim. A friend said that these are normal reactions of people at the moment, but for Li Qiaochu, after thinking about it, the psychological humiliation felt is particularly strong. Therefore, Li Qiaochu must rebuild her dignity through subsequent vocal actions. It is also a way of self-healing.
Another female friend of Li Qiaochu, who did not want to be named, said in an interview with VOA that the accusation Li Qiaochu faced was very absurd, because “she used all legal channels for complaints or disclosure of information to help herself. Shen Zhang, come to understand your own situation and complaints after your rights are damaged." This friend said that Li Qiaochu's way of defending his rights is also very gentle and low-key, and he rarely accuses the Communist Party, "How to subvert the regime?"
China's human rights suppression escalated
Female friends said that the parties involved in the "Xiamen Party" case were silent even after they were released from prison. Few people dared to talk publicly about the treatment in prison or the circumstances of the case. Li Qiaochu is the only channel in China that has repeatedly insisted on publicizing and supporting the parties.
She said that Li Qiaochu's arrest represented the Chinese government's expansion of the suppression of dissidents and human rights defenders.
She said: "The Chinese government's current strategy is to not allow family members to speak out and to arrest family members so that the family members cannot speak, and other people have no identity to speak out. This is a pretty big chilling effect."
Friends said that Li Qiaochu is known as Xu Zhiyong's girlfriend, but she is not an accessory to anyone. They said that 30-year-old Li Qiaochu has been concerned about labor issues since college, is a researcher on labor issues, and an active participant in feminism and civic movements. In 2017, when Beijing cleaned up the low-end population, she and other volunteers entered the community to gather information to help the disadvantaged find clues about employment and free accommodation. After 2018, Li Qiaochu participated in the opposition to 966 and supported non-governmental spontaneous movements such as MeToo, showing the side of independent women.
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