After the shocking “709 Incident” that took place a decade ago, the impact of this large-scale crackdown on human rights defenders in China, including rights lawyers and activists, continues to be felt. Last Sunday, the National Headquarters of the China Democratic Party held a rally in front of the Chinese Consulate in Los Angeles to show support for lawyers who continue to face repression and to protest against the Chinese Communist Party’s violations of the rule of law and human rights.
According to the “709 Crackdown Report” published by the Chinese Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group, before the crackdown, the Chinese Communist Party solicited opinions on the draft amendment to the Criminal Law (9th Amendment). On July 6, 2015, hundreds of rights lawyers jointly wrote a letter to the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress regarding controversial clauses, suggesting the removal of 35 articles and a delay in enforcing 36 articles to protect lawyers’ courtroom immunity. They feared that the new provisions might constitute “pocket crimes” for human rights lawyers.
Starting from July 9, the Chinese authorities began a widespread summoning and arrest of rights lawyers in as many as 23 provinces. Wang Quanzhang, Li Heping, Xie Yang, Xie Yan Yi, and hundreds of others were arrested, summoned, criminally detained, or sentenced.
The reason behind the crackdown was that at that time, rights lawyers provided legal assistance to many petitioners, which strengthened civil rights awareness and gradually formed a force to resist the illegal persecution of the CCP, thus restricting the authorities and exposing their widespread human rights violations, which the CCP viewed as a threat.
After the 709 Incident, the CCP’s repression of rights lawyers did not stop but continued in a more covert and systematic manner. The China Democratic Party aims to raise international awareness through rallies and be a voice for the persecuted.
Speaking at the event, Li Jie, Vice Chairman of the Los Angeles branch of the China Democratic Party National Headquarters, stated that the purpose of this activity is to reveal to the world the CCP’s indifference to and violations of human rights: the 709 Incident not only dealt a devastating blow to the community of Chinese lawyers but also a complete denial of the entire judicial system.
“We call on the international community and all advocates of justice to work together to end CCP dictatorship and establish an independent, fair, and transparent judicial system to restore dignity to the Chinese people,” Li Jie said.
Xie Yang, a rights lawyer from Hunan, is one of the lawyers arrested in the “709 Crackdown” and has been illegally detained for three and a half years, enduring torture in prison. Wang Xinye, a fellow townsman and a member of the China Democratic Party, spoke about Xie Yang’s fearless advocacy for the underprivileged and exposed the CCP’s pseudo-rule of law. “His spirit of ‘better to die than to be silent’ brings tears to my eyes and reminds me of the countless memories of those who sacrificed for justice in my hometown,” Wang Xinye said.
“Today, I speak on behalf of Xie Yang to commemorate his sacrifice, continue his spirit of resistance, and ensure that the next generation can truly have a future of fairness and justice,” Wang Xinye added.
During his speech, Zhao Xuefeng, a member of the China Democratic Party, highlighted the case of human rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang from the 709 Incident, who was unlawfully detained by the CCP on charges of “subverting state power” and sentenced to four and a half years just for upholding justice and conscience. Despite being released, he remains under strict surveillance and harassment, nearly deprived of personal freedom.
“This once again exposes the hypocrisy and brutality of the CCP’s judiciary,” Zhao Xuefeng said. “We strongly condemn the continued persecution of human rights lawyers by the CCP and call on the international community to pay attention to the plight of the Chinese rights defenders, and uphold the dignity of universal human rights and the rule of law.”