During the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, there were reports circulating online that several individuals had committed suicide near the National Petition Office. Some chose to jump into the Yongding River, while others resorted to hanging themselves. Yang Caiying, a petitioner from Jiangsu, live-streamed in front of the Chinese Consulate in Japan, calling for the withdrawal of the Petition Office.
Instances of petitioners committing suicide have been on the rise during the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC. In preparation for the session, governments across the country have taken various measures to maintain stability, with the National Petition Office forcefully clearing out a large number of petitioners on October 19th. Many weary petitioners, feeling hopeless about their rights, opted for suicide near the Yongding River.
On the night of October 23rd, cries for help were heard in front of the National Petition Office: “Does anyone have a knife?” “Hurry, save them!” It was later discovered that another petitioner had committed suicide by hanging.
On October 22nd, there were reports of desperate petitioners jumping into the Yongding River, with security personnel shouting: “No photos, no videos.”
Videos of people jumping into the Yongding River have been circulating online, including an incident on October 13th involving an elderly lady being rescued from the river by emergency personnel.
On October 16th, a female petitioner, dressed in a purple and black floral outfit with blue pants and white travel shoes, was found floating face-up in the Yongding River, suspected to be deceased.
In July, two petitioners also jumped into the river. On July 26th, a petitioner from Shandong jumped into the river after being intercepted, with plainclothes police watching from the shore without offering help. On July 13th, a pregnant petitioner from Wuqing District, Tianjin, was rescued after jumping into the river.
It has been reported that there have been over ten cases of petitioners committing suicide in 2025.
Some netizens expressed their outrage, calling for the end of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) tyranny and demanding justice for the atrocities committed by the CCP. They urged righteous individuals within the party to help the Chinese people and expose the CCP’s wrongdoings after its downfall.
Yang Caiying, a woman from Jiangsu living in Japan, along with her mother Xu Dongqing and sister Yang Li, have been tirelessly fighting for their rights regarding unjust land acquisition and demolition by the Chinese authorities, facing years of suppression and persecution. Despite their illnesses, Xu Dongqing and Yang Li have been falsely imprisoned. Similarly, Xia Beibei’s parents, Yin Dengzhen and Xiao Shujun from Hubei, are also suffering from serious illnesses while being wrongfully incarcerated. Yang Caiying and Xia Beibei called on the authorities to immediately stop depriving their ill relatives in custody of their medical rights, and issued a joint statement of solidarity concerning the recent wave of domestic incidents involving petitioners fighting for their rights.
On October 20th, Yang Caiying and Xia Beibei live-streamed in front of the Japanese consulate in Nagoya, urging Xi Jinping to dissolve the Petition Office, ensure judicial independence, and provide a way out for petitioners.
In an interview with Epoch Times, Xia Beibei stated, “We must also appeal to Chief Justice Zhang Jun to truly implement the goal of ‘letting the people feel fairness and justice in every judicial case’ and effectively protect judicial independence.”
Yang Caiying added, “Since the CCP has no intention of addressing the issues raised by petitioners, there should be no deception under the guise of the Petition Office, leading petitioners to exhaustion and subjecting them to harsh repression and persecution by local authorities, resulting in the tragic end of many petitioners’ lives.”
She emphasized, “The recent incident in Shiyan, Hubei, where a driver rammed into students, is said to be an act of social retaliation. I believe it is precisely because people are aware of the CCP’s cruel tactics against rights-defending petitioners that some have completely lost hope, abandoned their defiance and turned to retaliation against society.”