Human Rights in China is very pleased to learn that Chinese rights activist Hu Jia (胡佳) has been honored with the 2008 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. As this year marks the 60th anniversary of the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the European Parliament's conferral of its highest human rights award upon Hu Jia holds special significance. This is not only an honor for Hu Jia as an individual; it is also an expression of the international community's concern for the deteriorating human rights situation in China.
This award will serve as great encouragement to those working for the cause of human rights in China. The public attention generated by the award will help advance the nascent Chinese rights defense movement, promote the realization of universal human rights norms, and bring about in China the guarantee of the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
For more information on Hu Jia, see:
- "HRIC Statement: HRIC Condemns Official Interference in Access to Justice in Rights Defense Cases: Hu Jia, Guo Feixiong," April 21, 2008, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/49031;
- "HRIC Statement: HRIC Denounces Conviction of Prominent Activist Hu Jia," April 3, 2008, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/48317;
- "HRIC Statement: Politicized Trial of Rights Defender Hu Jia Guts Freedom of Expression in China," March 18, 2008, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/47879;
- "HRIC Action Bulletin: Activist Hu Jia Arrested (updated)," March 17, 2008, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/47293;
- "HRIC Statement: Drop Politically-Motivated Charges against Hu Jia," March 12, 2008, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/47723;
- "HRIC Statement: HRIC Condemns the Formal Arrest of Hu Jia," February 1, 2008, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/47275;
- "HRIC Statement: Protest the Detention of Hu Jia," December 28, 2007, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/46164;
- "HRIC Statement: Human Rights in China Condemns Attack on Hu Jia," November 12, 2007, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/45528;
- "Forced Psychiatric Treatment Threatened for AIDS Activist Hu Jia," June 9, 2004, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/9644.
For an English translation of Teng Biao and Hu Jia's article on human rights in the lead-up to the Olympics, see:
- "The Real Situation in Pre-Olympics China," China Rights Forum, No. 4 2007, http://hrichina.org/public/PDFs/CRF.4.2007/CRF-2007-4_Situation.pdf.
