News and Events 新闻活动

Police Detain Rights Activist and Self-taught Lawyer Guo Feixiong

Date: 2013-08-17

Rights activist and self-taught lawyer Yang Maodong (杨茂东), better known by his pen name Guo Feixiong (郭飞雄), has been detained by police in Guangzhou since August 8, according to statements by his lawyer, Sui Muqing (隋牧青), and the advocacy group Chinese Human Rights Defenders. According to reports, Yang is being held on charges of “assembling a crowd to disrupt order in a public place” and family was only notified of his detention on August 17. 

Rights activist and self-taught lawyer Yang Maodong (杨茂东), better known by his pen name Guo Feixiong (郭飞雄), has been detained by police in Guangzhou since August 8, according to statements by his lawyer, Sui Muqing (隋牧青), and the advocacy group Chinese Human Rights Defenders. According to reports, Yang is being held on charges of “assembling a crowd to disrupt order in a public place” and family was only notified of his detention on August 17.

Like the lawyer and anti-corruption activist Xu Zhiyong (许志永), who was detained by police on July 16, Yang is a leading member of a grassroots rights defense movement in support of constitutional freedoms in China. Xu remains in detention at an undisclosed location. The detentions of Xu and Yang signal an increasing government crackdown on rights activists calling for political reform and government accountability. Sui, Yang’s lawyer, has stated that he will make an attempt to visit Yang, who is being held in an undisclosed detention center in Guangzhou. Xu’s lawyer, Liu Weiguo (刘卫国), who was repeatedly denied access to Xu in the days following his detention in July, publicly called upon officials to lift obstructions preventing him from effectively representing his client.

The Committee to Support Chinese Lawyers urges government authorities to ensure that lawyer Sui Muqing is able to effectively represent his client Yang Maodong without intimidation, hindrance, harassment, or improper interference, including through free access and communication with Yang, in conformity with international standards, including the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers. The Committee further stands with Chinese colleagues calling openly for greater protections for lawyers and accountability concerning this latest crackdown on rights defense lawyers in China.