The family of detained human rights lawyer Chang Weiping accused Chinese authorities of torturing him and gathering information from his colleagues to build a case against him.
A torture complaint from the family of detained rights lawyer Chang Weiping has been rejected by Chinese officials in the northwestern province of Shaanxi, where he is being held. Chang is under investigation for alleged "subversion of state power" charge, following his participation in a December 2019 gathering of protesters in Xiamen City.
Chang's wife, Chen Zijuan expressed her family's concern over Chang being tortured during his incommunicado detention or "residential surveillance at a designated location (RSDL)" and the way Chinese authorities have been interviewing people close to him to build a case against him.
The detained rights lawyer's wife told Radio Free Asia that she had an "altercation with the staff of the Shaanxi provincial state prosecutor's office" and that staff had left the reception area and shut the door, leaving her alone. Chen recounted how Chinese authorities claimed they had "no control over the way that police investigate cases."
She was later directed to a supervisory committee, but her lawyer advised her against meeting with them, as torture investigations were managed by the procuratorate team. Chinese authorities had also rejected Chen and other rights lawyers Bao Longjun and Ren Quanniu, who attempted to file an official complaint at the Baoji municipal police department.
The detained rights lawyer was captured once again in October 2020 after he declared that he was tortured by Chinese authorities. He had already been detained for attending a gathering of human rights lawyers and advocates in Xiamen in December 2019.
Chinese authorities have now locked him up for "subversion of state power" charges, which has a more severe punishment, from his initial charge of "incitement to subvert state power" that has a maximum jail term of up to 15 years. He is now being held at the Fengxian Detention Center outside Baoji City.
In December 2020, Voice Of America reported how the detained rights lawyer's father shared his pain over seeing his son captured by Chinese authorities. Cheng's family had been warned by police to remain silent about his detention. Chang Shuanming, the father of the detained rights lawyer, described the last moment he saw his son, saying that he looked "fragile and tired with red eyes, "speaking intermittently...as if he was reciting something."
"His voice was so shrill and filled with horror that it instantly broke my heart into pieces," Shuanming recalled. He vowed, "My son, please stay in faith. I will never give up fighting for you."
Chang is an advocate for human rights, taking on cases for victims of workplace discrimination over HIV/AIDS and had also taken on cases involving defective vaccines. He also represented rights activists before Chinese authorities stripped him of his license.
Hong Kong-based Chinese Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group director general Du Song called for the investigation of Cheng's torture under international treaties, arguing that "China has no mechanism for monitoring [torture allegations], and no department is authorized to be the first port of call."
