A court in the eastern Chinese city of Suzhou on Tuesday sentenced Chinese human rights lawyer Yu Wensheng and his wife, Xu Yan, to prison.
Yu and Xu were detained by police in April 2023 while on the way to meet with high-level European officials visiting China. They were later charged with “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” and “inciting subversion of state power,” two crimes that Chinese authorities often use against dissidents.
Yu was sentenced to three years in prison, while Xu, who had already been detained for more than 18 months, could be released in January.
Their sentencing comes despite repeated efforts by the European Union and the U.N. Human Rights Council to draw attention to the case and call for their immediate and unconditional release.
Tuesday’s sentences will have a chilling effect within the community of rights advocates in China, analysts said.
“This case will likely deter other human rights activists from trying to meet with foreign diplomats because Yu and Xu were accused of colluding with foreign forces even though they didn’t make it to the scheduled meeting,” Patrick Poon, a visiting researcher at the University of Tokyo, told VOA by phone.
As China sentences prominent dissidents, others protest behind bars
