Two Chinese activists have been sentenced for subversion after over three years in detention.
According to the wife of lawyer Ding Jiaxi, her husband was sentenced to a 12-year jail term by a court in Shandong province.
Another activist, legal scholar Xu Zhiyong, was sentenced to 14 years, she says.
Their closed-door trial reportedly took place in one day in June 2022.
They were separately detained in 2019 and 2020. Also, they were part of a sprawling crackdown on legal activists.
‘Cruelly Farcical’ Convictions
According to Human Rights Watch, their convictions are “cruelly farcical”.
The rights group is calling for their sentences to be immediately canceled.
In 2010, Mr Ding and Mr Xu co-founded the New Citizens’ Movement, which campaigns for civil rights and government transparency.
They were first arrested in 2013 for their roles in protests calling for equal social and educational benefits for migrant workers in Beijing.
Also, they are among the most high-profile dissidents to have difficulties with Chinese authorities.
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In a submission to the Shandong court, Mr Ding’s lawyer said his client is being subjected to music being constantly blasted into his cell.
He was also said to have been made to sit upright for seven days straight following his arrest in 2019.
Similarly, Mr Xu who is a former lecturer at the Beijing University of Post and Telecommunications, alleged that he has been tortured.
