Guo Feixiong

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Guo Feixiong

Guo Feixiong (Chinese: 郭飞雄, born August 2, 1966) is the pen name of Yang Maodong (杨茂东), a Chinese human rights lawyer and writer from Guangdong Province who is often associated with the Weiquan movement . Guo is best known as a dissident writer and barefoot attorney who worked on several controversial issues to defend the rights of marginalized groups. Prior to his 2006 jail term, Guo worked as a legal advisor at Shengzhi Law Firm in Shanghai .

Arrests

In 2005 and 2006, human rights groups reported that Guo had been detained and beaten several times for his human rights activism, including his support for the stalemate in Taishi Village. The attack on Guo Feixiong was reportedly one of the catalysts behind a nationwide hunger strike organized by Guo's friend and associate, Gao Zhisheng .

Guo was arrested on September 30, 2006 and charged with "doing illegal business." The arrest was linked to the publication of his book on a political scandal in Liaoning Province and the "Shenyang Political Earthquake." After being detained for 17 months, he was sentenced to five years' imprisonment on November 14th, 2007 and detained in Meizhou Prison. This was characterized as a "negotiation with serious procedural irregularities". In addition to being sentenced, Guo was fined 40,000 yuan. Family members reported that Guo in detention, among other things with electric batons tortured and sleep had been withdrawn.

Guo was released on September 13, 2011. He said that he remained committed to the cause of human rights defense.

In January 2013, Guo took part in a demonstration against media censorship. The protest was triggered by a complaint about an editorial in the weekly newspaper Southern Weekly , which called for "stronger civil and political rights and compliance with the constitution". The Communist Party had objected to this and replaced it with another contribution. On August 8, 2013, Guo was arrested on suspicion of "gathering a crowd to disturb public order." On December 10, 2013, the Tianhe District Bureau of the Guangzhou Municipal Public Security Bureau recommended that Guo and Sun Desheng, another activist, "gather a crowd to disrupt order in a public place" for the crime should be. On October 29, 2013, the US House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee held a hearing on the circumstances surrounding Guo Feixiong's detention in China.

On November 27, 2015, Guo Feixiong was found guilty of "gathering a crowd to disturb public order" and "starting quarrels and provoking trouble" and sentenced to six years in prison.

On April 28, 2016, Amnesty International called for Urgent Action on Guo, who was in bad health. Amnesty reported that while in detention, Guo "lost a lot of weight" and "found it difficult to stand up". Guo is said to have "lost a lot of blood on April 19th". He was denied a medical examination and adequate medical care.

Awards

On September 11, 2015, Guo received the Front Line Defenders Award for Human Rights Defenders at Risk for his human rights work. Irish writer and playwright Sebastian Barry presented the award to his wife Zhang Qing in Guo's absence. Speaking at the awards ceremony, Barry said: “Guo Feixiong defended peasants who were expropriated; Falun Gong Practitioners Persecuted for Their Beliefs; and journalists who had the courage to speak up. It is a symbol of the stamina of the human mind, the will to survive and the human need for free thoughts that make life worth living. ”Two months later, Guo Feixiong was sentenced to six years in prison.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ About the Individual: Guo Feixiong (aka Yang Maodong) , Incorporating Responsibility 2008, An Olympics campaign by Human Rights in China, September 2008, accessed November 18, 2016
  2. ↑ a b c d e Urgent Action , Amnesty International, April 28, 2016, accessed November 21, 2016
  3. ↑ a b c Rights Defender Guo Feixiong Released from Prison; Remains Committed to Rights Work , Human Rights in China, September 13, 2011, accessed November 18, 2016
  4. ↑ China Detains Top Guangdong Rights Lawyer Guo Feixiong , Radio Free Asia, September 15, 2006, accessed November 18, 2016
  5. ↑ Rights Defender Guo Feixiong Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison , Human Rights in China, November 13, 2007, accessed November 18, 2016
  6. ↑ Chinese Rights Lawyer Beaten, Staging Hunger Strike in Prison , Radio Free Asia, December 28, 2007, accessed November 18, 2016
  7. ↑ Translation: Police Indictment Opinion for Guo Feixiong & Sun Desheng , Guangzhou Municipal Public Security Bureau, Tianhe District Branch, Opinion Recommending Indictment, GZ PSB Tianhe Indict. (2013) No. 03990, Siweiluozi Blog, December 26, 2013, accessed November 18, 2016
  8. ↑ Guo Feixiong and Freedom of Expression in China , Hearing before the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, House of Representatives, One Hundred Thirteenth Congress, First Session, October 29, 2013 , accessed November 18, 2016
  9. ↑ Hans Thoolen, 2015 Front Line Defenders Award to Chinese Guo Feixiong (Yang Maodong) , Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders, September 12, 2015, accessed on November 18, 2016
personal data
SURNAME Guo Feixiong
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Yang Maodong (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Chinese human rights lawyer
DATE OF BIRTH 2nd August 1966