Dear Mr. President,
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), has been informed of the severe crackdown on signatories to the "Charter 08", launched on December 9, 2008 on the Internet and calling for political reforms that promote human rights and democracy. More than 7,200 people from around the country have signed the Charter.
By January 8, 2009, Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD) had documented the cases of 101 signatories to the "Charter 08" having been questioned, summoned and intimidated by the police in 19 municipalities and provinces, including Beijing and Shanghai Municipalities and Zhejiang, Fujian, Hainan, Guangdong, Guangxi, Hunan, Guizhou, Hebei, Hubei, Shaanxi, Yunnan, Liaoning, Jiangxi, Jiangsu, Sichuan, Shandong and Heilongjiang Provinces[1]. The questioning seems designed to determine the authors of the Charter as well as to identify their methods for disseminating information. Interrogations often end with the authorities demanding an individual publicly renounce his or her support for the Charter. If this request is not met, police have accused signatories of joining "an illegal association", being "suspected of plotting to overthrow the regime" or otherwise intimidated or threatened them. The Government has also blocked or deleted websites and blogs that displayed the "Charter 08".
The Observatory is particularly concerned with the ongoing detention of Mr. Liu Xiaobo, signatory of the "Charter 08" and prominent intellectual. Mr. Liu is subjected to "residential surveillance" [2] since December 8, 2008 and remains detained at an undisclosed location in Beijing. At the time of his arrest, the police also searched his home and confiscated his computers, mobile phones, books, magazines, printed papers and a draft of the "Charter 08"[3]. As of January 8, 2008, the police had still not informed Mr. Liu or his wife of the crime for which he is detained for investigation nor of the duration of the residential surveillance.
Moreover, after Messrs. Chen Xi, Du Heping and Liang Zhuangyuan attended a teach-in on December 19, 2008 on the "Charter 08" in Hebin Park, Guiyang City, Guizhou Province, they were summoned by the police. Messrs. Chen and Liang refused the summons, but Mr. Liang complied and was interrogated about the Charter. This was the second time the three were summoned by the police about the Charter[4].
On December 25, 2008, Mr. Wen Kejian, an outspoken Hangzhou-based writer, was questioned by police for several hours in retaliation for signing "Charter 08".
On December 26, 2008, Mr. Zhang Zuhua, a leading drafter and signatory of the "Charter 08", was taken away from his home by four policemen from the Beijing National Security Brigade of Beijing Municipal Public Security (PSB) and the local branch of PSB came to his home and took him away for "detention for interrogation". Mr. Zhang was interrogated for three hours, during which he was warned about the "severe consequences" to his family and friends if he continued to give media interviews or engaging in any other activities in promoting "Charter 08". Mr. Zhang had already been summoned on December 8, on the eve of the launch of the Charter[5].
The Observatory strongly condemns the above-mentioned acts of intimidation and harassment against "Charter 08" signatories solely for their peaceful activities in expressing their views about how to promote democratic reform and protection of human rights in China, and as such are a flagrant violation of the provisions of the United Nations (UN) Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 9, 1998. By authorizing the police to continue this crackdown on the "Charter 08" movement, the Chinese Government blatantly violates its constitutional commitment and international treaty obligations to respect human rights.
The Observatory further recalls that in April 2006, the PRC submitted a document to the UN in order to support its candidacy to the Human Rights Council’s first election, in which it affirmed that amendment had been made to the Constitution to aim at "defining the position of human rights in the overall national development strategy", and that as a member of the Human Rights Council, the PRC "shall uphold the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights".
The Observatory therefore calls upon the Chinese authorities to immediately release Mr. Liu Xiaobo and all human rights defenders who remain deprived of liberty in the People’s Republic of China, insofar as their detention is arbitrary as it seems to merely aim at sanctioning their human rights activities. The Observatory also strongly urges the Chinese authorities to stop harassment against the "Charter 08" signatories as well as against all human rights defenders in China, and to guarantee in all circumstances their physical and psychological integrity.
We express our sincere hope that you will take these considerations and requests into account,
Yours sincerely,
Souhayr Belhassen
FIDH President
Eric Sottas
OMCT Secretary General