Chinese Mainland Police Kidnap Yet Another Lawyer In Xian

Grave concern over Chang Weiping, well-known public interest lawyer taken away by police, says Changsha Funeng, a NGO on public interest law

Around 22h on 12 January 2020, Chang Weiping (???), well-known public interest lawyer based in Xi’an, was taken from his home by the Goaxin (??) district office of the local public security bureau.  Chang’s wife was told the news by the police over the phone.  When Chang’s friend called the public security bureau for updates, a male phone operator simply noted that the family was informed but they refused to provide any concrete details of the case.  When Changsha Funeng (????) called the police station, they denied having Chang with them.

THE FULL REPORT  VIA CHINA LAW GROUP
Around 22h on 12 January 2020, Chang Weiping (???), well-known public interest lawyer based in Xi’an, was taken from his home by the Goaxin (??) district office of the local public security bureau.  Chang’s wife was told the news by the police over the phone.  When Chang’s friend called the public security bureau for updates, a male phone operator simply noted that the family was informed but they refused to provide any concrete details of the case.  When Changsha Funeng (????) called the police station, they denied having Chang with them.
Over the past years, Chang has defended both public interest and human rights cases.  He also filed multiple public interest lawsuits as plaintiff, including those on HIV/ AIDS and hepatitis B discrimination, gender-based harassment and discrimination, the Jinlong ????case on the quality of GMO products and food, as well as the Shunfeng (??) cases on abuses and monopoly of the ride-hailing market.  Chang has also represented petitioners, rights-defenders in various cases.
Several of the Chang’s cases have drawn media attention for their significance.  In an October 2019 case against a subsidiary of Maotai ????, liquor company in China, on its rejection to employ an HIV-positive job applicant. The case became the first case on “equal right to employment” since the Supreme People’s court amended the “Provisions on the Cause of Action of Civil Cases” in 2018 by adding into it “disputes on equal right to employment”.
Chang has also been a member of the

“Lawyers’ Group against Employment Discrimination”,

“Lawyers’ Group on LGBTI Equal Rights”, and

“Lawyers’ Group on Contaminated Vaccines”.

He also initiated activities to raise concern on HIV/AIDs equal rights to employment.  Over the past years, he has constantly provided free legal advice to the socially disadvantaged including women job applicants and members of the LGBTI in cases of discrimination and to the victims of the contaminated vaccines for redress and remedy.
It is believed that over his work, Chang must have offended officials with vested interests. His lawyer’s permit was suspended for 3 months in October 2018 by the Baoji City Judicial Bureau in Shaanxi province. On 22 November 2018, the licence of Chang’s law firm was invalidated.  On 14 January 2019, Chang completed serving the 3-month suspension of his lawyer’s permit but has since then been unable to find any law firm in Shaanxi that would admit him.  For the dozen of firms he tried, they either changed their mind at the point of signing the employment contract with him or simply cancelled the contract soon after submitting his papers to the Judicial Bureau. Despite all this, Chang has always been proud of being a public interest lawyer.  He often wrote articles to encourage young lawyers to spare time for public interest cases.
Changsha Funeng points out that Chang lawyer Chang Weiping has helped to promote and implement the equality laws China.  Through his work for the socially disadvantaged sectors and those suffering discrimination on various bases, he has enormously contributed to improve the conditions of human rights and rule of law in China.  As a lawyer of conscience, Chang has been under the authorities’ constant suppression and surveillance.  It is impossible that he could have committed any crime of any kind.  It is blatant clear that Chang’s arrest is an act of revenge by the authorities.  This will trigger not only disdain from the public welfare sectors in the country, but also the anger of the many who have been assisted by Chang.  We call on the police to re-examine the legality of their action against Chang, and immediately release him!
We will closely follow the case!
2020/01/14 update: On 8:00am January 14, police called lawyer Chang Weiping’s wife and told her that Chang Weiping has been placed under “residential surveillance in a designated location” with charge of Subversion of State Power. Under China’s Criminal Law, punishment for I Subversion of State Power can be up to life imprisonment. In practice, “residential surveillance in a designated location” is a kind of enforced disappearance that means no one knows the detention place, detainees cannot meet any body including their lawyers and family members in up to six months and usually suffer torcher.
For enquiry
1. Gaoxin police sub-office, Baoji City, Xi’an?86-189 9277 7727?86-0917 292 0615
2?Yang Zhanqing (???), co-founder of Changsha Funeng
Email: [email protected]
Whatsapp/Signal: +1 (929) 287-7799

Some of the cases taken up by lawyer Chang Weiping:

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