Honor Human Rights Defenders——Send Messages to Imprisoned and Detained Human Rights Defenders to Show Your Support
Human rights defenders play a critical role in ensuring peaceful exercise of rights and promoting an independent civil society. As China’s civil society faces increasingly steep restrictions, human rights defenders have become the targets of draconian and comprehensive crackdowns. For their efforts, many human rights defenders have lost their jobs, family members, and personal freedom; many suffer mistreatment and torture in prison.
In these dark times for so many of them, HRIC honors their work, their spirit of dedication, and the great price they continue to pay in promoting the progress of civil society. Please take a moment to send messages to the imprisoned and detained rights defenders—to show your concern, solidarity, and support.
HRIC has compiled a list of human rights defenders who are currently imprisoned or detained and their addresses. You may send your messages in one of two ways:
- By mailing a card or letter to the prison/detention center using both the English and Chinese addresses.
- By sending your message to us via email at communications@hrichina.org (subject line: Support Message for Human Rights Defender). We will translate any messages received through February 18, 2022 and mail them to the respective defenders.
SAMPLE MESSAGE:
Dear [*DEFENDER NAME]:
I learned about your story and want to let you know that you are not alone in this difficult time.
Thank you for all that you have done to protect fundamental rights and promote an independent civil society in China.
Sincerely,
[OPTIONAL: SIGN WITH YOUR NAME (OR PEN NAME) & COUNTRY]
Our list is by no means complete and we will continue to augment it. We welcome your contribution. Please send information about rights defenders not on our list and their addresses to this email address: communications@hrichina.org (subject line: Info on Chinese human rights defenders) and we will add to the list after verification.
Sentenced (In order of sentence length)
Dissident. During the early era of Reform and Opening up, Wang was among the first group of students sent by the Chinese government to study abroad and was the first such student to obtain a doctorate degree overseas. In the early 1980s, he founded the first overseas democracy movement publication, “China Spring.” Wang openly launched a campaign condemning China's one-party dictatorship and participated in the creation of the Alliance for Democratic China, the Chinese Freedom Democracy Party, and the China Democracy & Justice Party. He was arrested by the Chinese secret police in Vietnam in June 2002 and sentenced to life imprisonment the following year for "espionage" and "organizing and leading a terrorist organization."
Address:
Dr. Wang Bingzhang (王炳章)
Guangdong Shaoguan Prison No. 7 Mailbox 14-3
Lishi Town, Xunjiang District
Shaoguan City, Guangdong Province
China
Postal code: 512140
收信地址：
邮编512140
广东省韶关市浈江区犁市镇7号信箱14-3
广东韶关监狱
王炳章 博士（收）
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Professor of Economics at Minzu University of China in Beijing, founder of the "Uyghur Online" website, human rights defender, and advocate of rights of Uyghurs. Arrested on January 15, 2014, he was tried at the Urumqi Intermediate People's Court on September 23, 2014 and sentenced to life imprisonment for "separatism."
Address:
Ilham Tohti (伊力哈木.土赫提)
Xinjiang Autonomous Region No. 1 Prison
No. 5 Siping Road, Xinshi District
Urumqi, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region
China
Postal code: 830013
收信地址：
邮编830013
新疆乌鲁木齐市新市区四平路5号
新疆自治区第一监狱
伊力哈木·土赫提（Ilham Tohti）教授（收）
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Dissident and rights activist. He founded 64 Tianwang, one of the earliest websites in China to help vulnerable groups defend their rights. Huang was detained on November 28, 2016, and formally arrested on December 16. On July 29, 2019, he was sentenced to 12 years in prison and four years of post-release deprivation of political rights for "intentionally leaking state secrets" and "unlawfully providing state secrets abroad." He was convicted based on the "Report of the Political and Legal Committee of the Communist Party of the Mianyang City Youxian District in handling Chen Tianmao's petitions, appeals, and related issues" he posted on the 64 Tianwang website. Before that, Huang was imprisoned twice, for a total of eight years.
Address:
Huang Qi（黄琦）
Bazhong Prison
Pinghe Township
Nanjiang County
Bazhong City, Sichuan Province
China
Postal code: 636620
收信地址：
邮编636620
四川省巴中市南江县坪河乡
四川省巴中监狱
黄琦 （收）
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Originally a teacher at the Zhejiang Provincial Higher Public Security College, Lü was dismissed from his post in 1993 for his pro-democracy activities; he later worked as a freelance writer. One of the founders of the China Democracy Party, he has written many articles promoting democracy and consistently spoken out for pro-democracy rights defenders on the lower rungs of society. He was imprisoned twice, including for four years on conviction of "inciting subversion of state power" (2007-2011). He was detained on July 7, 2014 and formally arrested in August that year in connection with publishing essays online critical of the Chinese government. In 2016, he was tried and convicted of "inciting subversion of state power" by the Hangzhou Intermediate People's Court, Zhejiang Province, and sentenced to 11 years in prison.
Address:
Lü Gengsong (吕耿松)
Changhu Prison District No. 12
No. 1500 Xifeng Road
Huzhou City, Zhejiang Province
China
Postal code: 313000
收信地址：
邮编313000
浙江省湖州市西凤路1500号
浙江省长湖监狱十二监区
吕耿松（收）
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Former lecturer at the School of Management of Chengdu University, founder of the Constitutional Forum (Xianzheng lunheng) website, member of the Independent Chinese PEN Centre, founding pastor of the Early Rain Covenant Church in Chengdu. In 2004, he was listed as one of "Most Influential Public Intellectuals" by Southern People Weekly. He was taken away by the police on December 9, 2018, criminally detained on December 11 on suspicion of "inciting subversion of state power," and formally arrested on December 18. On December 30, 2019, he was sentenced to nine years in prison and three years of post-release deprivation of political rights for "inciting subversion of state power" and "illegal business operations."
Address:
Wang Yi（王怡）
Jintang Prison
Huopen Road, Qingjiang Town
Jintang County
Chengdu, Sichuan Province
China
Postal code: 610409
收信地址：
邮编610409
四川省成都市金堂县清江镇火盆路
四川省金堂监狱
王怡 （收）
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Activist, known online as the "Super Vulgar Butcher." Wu participated in the investigations of many sensitive cases and those that attracted wide public attention, including the case of Deng Yujiao in Hubei Province, who stabbed an official while trying to fight off his sexual advance, resulting in his death, and the case of Qian Yunhui, a petitioning village chief in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, who was crushed to death by a car. Wu was detained on May 27, 2015 for protesting against the Jiangxi High People’s Court’s refusal to allow access by defense lawyers in the “Leping Wrongful Conviction Case” (乐平冤案) to case files. He was later arrested for “inciting subversion of state power” and “picking quarrels and provoking troubles.” On December 26, 2017, following a secret trial in August, a court in Tianjin convicted him of “subversion of state power” and sentenced him to eight years in prison and five years of post-release deprivation of political rights.
Address:
Wu Gan (吴淦)
Fujian Qingliu Prison
Xinken New Village, Linshe Township, Qingliu County
Sanming City, Fujian Province
China
Postal code: 365303
收信地址：
邮编365303
福建省三明市清流县林畲乡新垦新村
福建省清流监狱
吴淦（收）
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Head of Beijing Fengrui Law Firm, who has participated in many rights defense cases and was described by state media as the convenor of “die-hard” (sike) lawyers. He was arrested on July 10, 2015, as part of the nationwide 709 Crackdown on more than 300 rights lawyers and defenders. On August 4, 2016, Zhou was convicted of “subversion of state power” by a court in Tianjin and sentenced to seven years in prison and five years of post-release deprivation of political rights.
Address:
Zhou Shifeng (周世锋)
Tianjin Municipal No. 1 Prison District No. 10
11th Street, Yangliuqing Town
Xiqing District, Tianjin
China
Postal code: 300380
收信地址：
邮编300380
天津市西青区杨柳青镇11街
天津市第一监狱第十监区
周世锋（收）
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Former university lecturer, democracy advocate, and an elder of a Christian community church and honored as "Elder Hu." In 1994, in connection with organizing a political party and planning activities to commemorate the victims of June Fourth, Hu was sentenced to 20 years in prison on conviction of “organizing and leading a counter-revolutionary group” and “counter-revolutionary propaganda and incitement." After his release from prison on August 26, 2008, Hu continued to promote democracy and freedom in China. He was arrested on July 10, 2015 as part of the nationwide 709 Crackdown on rights lawyers and defenders. He was sentenced on August 3, 2016 to seven-and-a-half years in prison and five years of post-release deprivation of political rights for "subversion of state power." Hu suffers from a variety of illnesses, but his family's repeated applications for medical parole have been rejected.
Address:
Hu Shigen (胡石根)
Tianjin Changtai Prison
Jinzi Highway
Xiqing District, Tianjin
China
Postal code: 300381
收信地址：
邮编300381
天津市西青区津淄公路
天津长泰监狱
胡石根（收）
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Veteran legal activist and head of Changsha Funeng, a public interest NGO, who has successfully participated in and supported many influential lawsuits. He was arrested on July 22, 2019 and sentenced in July 2021 to five years in prison for “subversion of state power.”
Address:
Cheng Yuan (程渊)
Chishan Prison
Nanzui Town
Yiyang City, Hunan Province
China
收信地址：
邮编413104
湖南省益阳市沅江市南嘴镇
赤山监狱
程渊（收）
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Human rights lawyer, who represented Falun Gong practitioners and supported the 2014 Umbrella Movement in Hong Kong. Yu defended human rights lawyers arrested during the nationwide 709 Crackdown on rights lawyers and defenders. On January 19, 2018, he published a citizen’s proposal calling for constitutional amendment and political reform at the 2nd Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, and was arrested the next day. On June 17, 2020, Yu was sentenced to four years in prison and three years of post-release deprivation of political rights by the Xuzhou City Intermediate People’s Court for “inciting subversion of state power.”
Address:
Yu Wensheng (余文生)
Nanjing Prison
No. 9 Ningshuang Road
Yuhuatai District
Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province
China
Postal code: 210012
收信地址：
邮编210012
江苏南京市雨花台区宁双路9号
江苏省南京监狱
余文生（收）
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Former lawyer, a Christian. In early February 2020, during the COVID-19 outbreak in China, Zhang went to various communities in Wuhan to report on the unfolding situation and disseminated information to the outside world through social media, and came to be known as a citizen journalist. She was detained on May 14, 2020 and was sentenced on December 28, 2020 to four years in prison for "picking quarrels and provoking trouble." In detention and prison, she has gone on hunger strike multiple times and has been forced fed. Zhang, 38, has been suffering from deteriorating health. In November 2021, family members told the outside world that they fear she may not survive the winter. Her case has gained worldwide attention.
Address:
Zhang Zhan (张展)
Shanghai Women’s Prison
No. 1601 Zhangjing Road, Sijing Town
Songjiang District, Shanghai
China
Postal code: 201601
收信地址：
邮编201601
上海市松江区泗泾镇张泾路1601号
上海女子监狱
张展（收）
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Staff member of the NGO Changsha Funeng. Wu was arrested along with the head of the NGO Cheng Yuan and his colleague Liu Dazhi on July 22, 2019. He was sentenced to three years in prison in July 2021 for “subversion of state power.”
Address:
Wu Ge Jianxiong (吴葛健雄)
Chishan Prison
Nanzui Town
Yuanjiang City, Hunan Province
China
Postal code: 413104
收信地址：
邮编413104
湖南省沅江市南嘴镇
赤山监狱
吴葛健雄（收）
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Sentencing Pending (in order of the date of detention/arrest)
Human rights lawyer, who worked it the Beijing Dunxin Law Firm. Li has represented many sensitive cases. She herself became a target for representing lawyer Wang Yu, who was among those arrested in the nationwide 709 Crackdown. On October 9, 2017, Li was taken away by the police while handling a case in Shenyang, and was later detained on suspicion of "picking quarrels and provoking trouble." She was formally arrested on November 15, 2017, and was additionally charged with "fraud" in March 2018. On October 20, 2021, Li was tried in the Heping District Court in Shenyang City, Liaoning Province. The court has not yet announced its ruling.
Address:
Li Yuhan（李昱函）
Shenyang No. 1 Detention Center
Gaoli Village, Zaohua Village
Yuhong District
Shenyang City, Liaoning Province
China
Postal code: 110148
收信地址：
邮编110148
沈阳市于洪区造化镇高力村
沈阳市第一看守所
李昱函 （收）
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Human rights lawyer. He was detained on the evening of October 31, 2019 for continuing to share posts that criticize the government, and participating in founding the "China Post-Lawyers Club" to support human rights lawyers whose licenses have been revoked. He was formally arrested on December 3, 2019 on suspicion of “inciting subversion of state power.” On December 31, 2021, he was tried in the Nanning Intermediate People's Court, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, in a proceeding that was not open to the public.
Address:
Qin Yongpei (覃永沛)
Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region No. 2 Detention Center
Jinji Road, Qixing District
Guilin City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region
China
Postal code: 450300
收信地址：
邮编450300
广西桂林市七星区金鸡路
广西壮族自治区第二看守所
覃永沛（收）
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Lawyer, human rights activist, and one of the main organizers of the New Citizens Movement. In 2014, he was sentenced to three years and six months in prison for "gathering a crowd to disturb social order" in connection with advocating the disclosure of officials' assets and equal education rights. After release from prison, he continued his rights advocacy work. He was arrested on December 26, 2019 for participating in the “Xiamen Gathering” (also known as the “12.26 Citizen Case”) and was indicted on August 5, 2021 for "subversion of state power."
Address:
Ding Jiaxi (丁家喜)
Linshu County Detention Center
Wujieqian Village, Qingyun Town, Linshu County,
Linyi City, Shandong Province
China
Postal code: 276712
收信地址：
邮编276712
山东省临沂市临沭县青云镇吴界前村
临沭县看守所
丁家喜（收）
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One of the founders of Open Constitution Initiative, a key founder and iconic figure of the New Citizens Movement. Xu obtained a doctorate degree in law from Peking University, and was a lecturer at the Beijing University of Post and Telecommunications. He was elected as a delegate to the Beijing Haidian District’s 13th and 14th People’s Congresses. In 2014, Xu was sentenced to four years in prison for "gathering a crowd to disturb order in a public place" in connection with advocating non-violent social movements and citizens' equal right to education. After he was released on July 15, 2017, he wrote extensively on the rule of law and reform. He was detained on the evening of February 15, 2020 in connection with participating in the "Xiamen Gathering" (also known as the “12.26 Citizen Case”) and publishing “Admonition to Resign,” an essay that reprimands Xi Jinping for his incompetence and urges him to step down for the sake of the country. On August 5, 2021, he was indicted for "subversion of state power."
Address:
Dr. Xu Zhiyong (许志永 博士)
Linshu County Detention Center
Wujieqian Village, Qingyun Town,
Linshu County,
Linyi City, Shandong Province
China
Postal code: 276712
收信地址：
邮编276712
山东省临沂市临沭县青云镇吴界前村
临沭县看守所
许志永 博士（收）
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Wang Zang (pen name of Wang Yuwen) is a poet, freelance writer, member of the Independent Chinese PEN Center Club, and member of the Chinese Free Culture Movement. On May 30, 2020, Wang was taken from his home and was formally arrested on July 3 by the Chuxiong Prefecture Public Security Bureau in Yunnan Province on suspicion of "inciting subversion of state power." Previously, he had been placed under residential surveillance twice, for a total of more than eight months, for publishing articles critical of totalitarian culture on overseas networks and participating in a number of rights defense activities. In 2014, he was arrested on suspicion of "picking quarrels and provoking trouble" for speaking out in support of the Umbrella Movement in Hong Kong. He was released on bail in July 2015. Reportedly, the arrest in 2020 was linked to his public speech and performance art after his release in 2015. In July 2020, Wang’s wife, Wang Li (pen name of Wang Liqin; see profile below), who spoke out against Wang’s arrest, was herself arrested on the same charge.
Address:
Wang Yuwen (王玉文)
Chuxiong City Detention Center
No. 14 Police Academy Road, Lucheng Town,
Chuxiong City, Yunnan Province
China
Postal code: 675000
收信地址：
邮编675000
云南楚雄市鹿城镇警校路14号
楚雄市看守所
王玉文 （收）
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Wang Li (pen name of Wang Liqin), wife of the poet and writer Wang Zang. After Wang Zang was detained by the police on May 30, 2020, Wang Li appealed for her husband’s release through social media and in interviews with overseas media, and publicized the persecution of herself, their elderly family members, and her children by the Yunnan police. On June 17, 2020, Wang Li was detained and then formally arrested on July 24 by the Chuxiong Prefecture Public Security Bureau on suspicion of "inciting subversion of state power." She is known to have been suffering from schizophrenia since 2014 due to persecution by the authorities.
Address:
Wang Liqin (王利芹)
Chuxiong Prefecture Detention Center
Shangpingshan Village, Futa Community, Lucheng Town,
Chuxiong City, Yunnan Province
China
Postal code: 675000
收信地址：
邮编675000
云南楚雄市鹿城镇福塔社区上平山村
楚雄州看守所
王利芹 （收）
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Human rights lawyer, who has represented many influential public interest litigation and human rights cases. He was secretly detained for 12 days in January 2020 for participating in the "Xiamen Gathering" (also known as the “12.26 Citizen Case”) during which he was severely tortured. On January 23, 2020, he was released on bail pending trial. On October 16 in the same year, he disclosed his torture in a video. On October 22, 2020, he was secretly detained again on suspicion of “inciting subversion of state power.” He was formally arrested on April 7, 2021 on suspicion of the more serious charge of “subversion of state power.” On September 6, 2021, his case was submitted to the procuratorate for indictment.
Address:
Chang Weiping (常玮平)
Baoji City Fengxian Detention Center
Xinjian Road, Shuangshipu Town, Feng County
Baoji City, Shaanxi Province
China
Postal code: 721700
收信地址：
邮编721700
陕西省宝鸡市凤县双石铺镇新建路
宝鸡市凤县看守所
常玮平（收）
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Feminist and labor rights advocate, of the post-1990 generation. Li holds a bachelor’s degree from the School of Labor and Human Resources at Renmin University of China and a master’s degree in public policy from the University of York in the United Kingdom. After graduation, she worked as a research assistant at Tsinghua University. She was detained in the early morning of February 16, 2020, just hours after her boyfriend Xu Zhiyong was taken into custody, and was held incommunicado for four months. After being released on bail in June 2020, she published her experience in detention and continued to advocate for Xu and others arrested. On February 6, 2021, she was detained on suspicion of "inciting subversion of state power." She is reportedly suffering from severe depression, and her family multiple applications for her bail were all rejected.
Address:
Li Qiaochu (李翘楚)
Linyi City Detention Center
Dasanguanmiao Village, Zhonggou Town,
Hedong District,
Linyi City, Shandong Province
China
Postal code: 276027
收件地址：
邮编276027
山东省临沂市河东区重沟镇大三官庙村
临沂市看守所
李翘楚（收）
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Independent investigative journalist who previously worked at China News Service, New Express, and Southern Metropolis Daily, among other outlets. She actively participated in the feminist and #MeToo movements, and assisted many women in online reporting on cases of sexual assault and abuse. In June 2019, she went to Hong Kong to participate in the Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill (Anti-ELAB) protests and wrote an article to share her experience publicly. Afterwards, she was secretly detained for four months on suspicion of "picking quarrels and provoking trouble." On September 19, 2021—a day before she was scheduled to leave for the U.K. to study—she was secretly detained. She was officialy arrested on October 27 on suspicion of "inciting subversion of state power."
Address:
Huang Xueqin (黄雪琴)
Guangzhou No. 2 Detention Center
Tangang Village, Shijing Town
Baiyun District, Guangzhou
China
Postal code: 510430
收信地址：
邮编510430
广州市白云区石井镇潭岗村
广州市第二看守所
黄雪琴（收）
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Public interest advocate who has been concerned with youth education and growth, and supported China’s #MeToo movement. Since 2018, he has also been concerned about the rights and interests of workers with occupational diseases and provided them with legal support. On September 19, 2021, he had planned to see Huang Xueqin off on her trip to the U.K. but was secretly detained along with Huang. On October 27, he was officially arrested on suspicion of "inciting subversion of state power."
Address:
Wang Jianbing (王建兵)
Guangzhou No. 1 Detention Center
No. 9 Shigang North Street, Guanghai Road, Chatou,
Baiyun District, Guangzhou
China
Postal code: 510430
收信地址：
邮编510430
广州市白云区槎头广海路狮岗北街9号
广州市第一看守所
王建兵（收）
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