Annual Report on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders in China ...

<strong>Annual</strong> <strong>Report</strong> on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders in China (2009)April 26, 2010The visits to China by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and PresidentBarack Obama, in March and November respectively, were two “sensitive” events duringwhich the government clamped down on human right defenders. 139 During Secretary ofState Clinton’s trip in February, CHRD documented 12 human rights defenders who weretaken on forced trips or placed under “soft detention.” In November, when PresidentObama visited China, CHRD documented ten cases of individuals subjected to “softdetention” or “forced travel.” 140 These numbers only represent a small piece of a largerpicture, because CHRD’s ability to report is greatly reduced during these periods as fewhuman rights defenders have the ability to collect information and get the word out.Much more far-reaching, however, were efforts to control dissent and activism during thetwo most “sensitive” dates in 2009, the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen SquareMassacre and the 60 th anniversary of the founding of the PRC. At least 38 activists anddissidents were placed under “soft detention” in the days leading up to June 4, whileahead of National Day, CHRD documented 33 cases of activists and dissidents aroundthe country who were placed under “soft detention.” 141 With more domestic andinternational attention focused on Beijing during these dates, police had greater incentiveto cast a wider net in restricting citizens’ freedom of movement.Over the course of these events, politically sensitive individuals may have had theirmovements restricted in different ways by police. Take, for example, Wang Debang (), a human rights activist from Guilin City, Guangxi Province, now living in Beijing.During Secretary of State Clinton’s visit to China, Wang was placed under surveillanceby police. During the period around June 4, he was placed under “soft detention.” Priorto National Day, however, Wang was forced to leave his home in Beijing and return toGuilin. Once he reached his hometown, Wang was then placed under “soft detention.” 142Allowed to return to Beijing on October 4 following the National Day celebration, Wangwas then forced to leave the city again during President Obama’s visit the followingmonth. Police from Beijing and Guilin’s National Security Unit took Wang to QingdaoCity, Shandong Province. 143邦 德 王As discussed earlier, Chinese authorities continued to deny human rights defenders theirright to travel abroad to attend human rights conferences, take part in academicexchanges, or attend training sessions on rights defense. But this form of harassment wasalso practiced on human rights defenders who attempted to leave the country simply forvacation or to visit relatives. While border guards turned back human rights defenders atairports and border crossings, local officials confiscated travel documents or otherwiseprevented human rights defenders from leaving their homes to embark on their travel. Forexample, on June 5, police in Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province summoned rights defenderDeng Taiqing ( ahead of a scheduled trip to Hong Kong. 144 The policeconfiscated his passport and Hong Kong and Macau travel permit and warned him not toleave the country before October 1. 145邓Relatives of human rights defenders were at times similarly harassed. In mid-August, thedaughter of Wang Sen ( an imprisoned member of the Sichuan branch of thebanned China Democracy Party, was denied a passport to study abroad. Officials in王39) 清 太森 ),