An 80-year-old petitioner from Yangpu District, Shanghai, named Lu Liming has been detained in an unofficial prison, often referred to as a “black hotel,” ahead of the fifth plenary session of the Chinese Communist Party. On October 27, he managed to escape by using a rope to slide down from the fourth floor of the detention facility, only to be intercepted by government personnel and security guards in Cangzhou, Hebei, where he was taken back into custody.
According to information and photographs provided by insiders, Lu Liming suffered multiple injuries on his hands due to the ropes he used during his daring escape. Currently, he remains confined in the same black prison.
Lu Liming is a victim of forced demolition, having lost more than twenty properties located in a prime area of Yangpu District due to government actions. Despite the destruction of his family’s homes, he has yet to receive any compensation. Each time he attempts to petition for his rights, the authorities retaliate against him with harassment and incarceration, especially during significant government meetings and sensitive dates.
Born in 1946, Lu Liming resides in Changhaisan Village in Yangpu District and is a retired worker from the Shanghai Metallurgical Steel Utilization Factory.
The troubles began for Lu in June 2003 when local authorities approved the demolition of his community, Minxing Southeast. His ancestral home was included in the demolition plan, but only Lu’s family was promised relocation, while the inheritance share for his siblings was disregarded. Outraged by the unfair arrangements, Lu refused to sign the demolition agreement and took his case to the Yangpu District Court, which refused to accept it.
On January 13, 2006, the district government collaborated with a real estate developer, Shanghai Xingyun, to forcibly demolish properties shared among Lu and his siblings, including his mother. Afterward, Lu began his struggle for rights, leading to over thirty detentions and criminal arrests to date.
Following his petitions, Lu Liming has faced numerous acts of violence, including being beaten by stability maintenance personnel. Three years after the implementation of a new Mental Health Law, local authorities and police forced him into a psychiatric hospital, where he was detained against his will.
Between 2015 and 2016, Lu made headlines by tying his petition materials to carrots and throwing them over the wall into Zhongnanhai, the central government compound. On December 15, 2016, he was sentenced to one year and six months in prison by the Yangpu District Court for allegedly “disrupting the order of state organs.”
During the 2025 Two Sessions, Lu was reportedly beaten by security guards in the black prison, resulting in a broken rib. He found himself imprisoned again during the 2026 Two Sessions, and in a moment of frustration, he set fire to the detention facility. Now, he remains confined following his detention during the Fifth Plenary Session, with no communication established between him and the outside world.
As of the time of this report, attempts to reach Lu Liming via his mobile phone have been unsuccessful.