The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint
program of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) and the
International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), requests your
urgent intervention in the following situation in China.
Brief description of the situation:
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders would
like to express its deep concern over the harsh sentence imposed on
Ma Yalian because of articles she posted on the Internet exposing
human rights violations of people petitioning the government over
social injustice and illegal acts.
According to Human Rights in China (HRIC), on March 16, 2004, the
Shanghai’s RTL Administrative Committee sentenced Ms. Ma Yalian to
one and a half years of Reeducation Through Labor (RTL). The decision
claimed that "from July 2003 until February 2004, Ma Yalian on
numerous occasions posted on chineselawyer.com.cn, dajiyuan.com and
other Websites, articles falsely accusing the Shanghai authorities of
causing her physical injury." The decision also stated that Ma Yalian
had "turned petitioning into pestering."
Reportedly, the main reason for Ma’s arrest was an article she posted
on several Websites entitled, "A True Record of Being Turned Away
from the National Petitions and Letters Office and the Petitions
Bureau of the National People’s Congress." In this article Ma Yalian
provides an eyewitness account of physical abuse endured by
petitioners from police and officials outside of Beijing’s main
petitions offices. The article includes accounts by many petitioners
describing their brutal treatment at the hands of the authorities,
providing the names, places of origin and dates of incident. Also
included are accounts of petitioners who committed suicide outside of
the petitions offices. Ma Yalian describes her own experience of
physical abuse and humiliation at the petitions offices.
Ma Yalian had spent many years petitioning the authorities over her
forcible removal during an urban redevelopment clearance in Shanghai.
The Shanghai Public Security Bureau previously sentenced her to one
year of RTL in August 2001 for her efforts. While serving that RTL
sentence, Ma Yalian had both her legs broken by police. She has been
physically disabled ever since.
By criticising the petition system in China, Ma Yalian was advocating
for the respect of the right to an effective remedy for acts
violating the fundamental rights, enshrined in Article 8 of the
Universal Declaration on Human Rights as well as Article 2.3 of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
The sentencing of Ma Yalian consequently violates the UN Declaration
on Human Rights Defenders, notably its Article 6 which states that
"[e]veryone has the right, individually and in association with
others, freely to publish, impart or disseminate to others views,
information and knowledge on all human rights and fundamental
freedoms [as well as] to study, discuss, form and hold opinions on
the observance, both in law and in practice, of all human rights and
fundamental freedoms and, though these and appropriate means, to draw
attention to those matters".
Action requested:
Please write to the authorities of China, urging them to:
i. Release immediately and unconditionally Ma Yalian and guarantee
her physical and psychological integrity in all circumstances.
ii. Conform with the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted
by the United Nations’ General Assembly on 9 December 1998, in
particular its article 1, which states that " everyone has the right,
individually and in association with others, to promote and to strive
for the protection and realization of human rights and fundamental
freedoms at the national and international levels ", and its article
6 mentioned above.
iii. Conform with the provisions of the Universal Declaration on
Human Rights, and with the other international instruments binding
China.
Addresses:
President Hu Jintao, People’s Republic of China, c/o Embassy of the
People’s Republic of China; 2300 Connecticut Ave., NW, Washington,
D.C., 20008, USA, Fax: +01
202 588-0032
President Hu Jintao, People’s Republic of China, c/o Permanent
Mission of the People’s Republic of China, Chemin de Surville 11,
Case postale 85, 1213 Petit-Lancy 2,
Genève, Suisse, Fax: +4122 7937014, E-mail:
mission.china@ties.itu.int
Minister of Justice of the People’s Republic of China, Zhang Fusen
Buzhang, Sifabu, 10 Chaoyangmen Nandajie, Chaoyangqu, Beijingshi
100020, People’s Republic of
China, Fax: +86 10 65 292345
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China, Li
Zhaoxing Buzhang Waijiaobu, 2 Chaoyangmen Nandajie, Beijingshi
100701, People’s Republic of China,
Fax: +86 10 6588 2594, Email: ipc@fmprc.gov.cn
Ambassadeur, Sha Zukang, Mission permanente de la Rép. Pop. De Chine,
Ch. De Surville, CP 85, 1213 Petit-Lancy 2, Suisse, e-mail:
mission.china@ties.itu.int, Fax :
+4122 793.70.14
Paris, Geneva, April 5, 2004
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this
appeal in your reply.
The Observatory, a joint FIDH and OMCT venture, is dedicated to the
protection of Human Rights Defenders, and aims to offer them concrete
support in their time of need.