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Xu Zhiyong (; born March 2, 1973) is a Chinese civil rights activist and formerly a lecturer at the
Beijing University of Post and Telecommunications The Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications (BUPT) () is a key national university distinguished by the teaching and research in the field of cable communications, wireless communications, computer, and electronic engineering. BUP ...
. He was one of the founders of the NGO
Open Constitution Initiative The Open Constitution Initiative (OCI) (), sometimes referred to in English as Gongmeng, was an organization consisting of lawyers and academics in the People's Republic of China that advocated for the rule of law and greater constitutional prot ...
and an active rights lawyer in China who campaigned against corruption and helped those underprivileged. He is the main founder and icon of the New Citizens' Movement in China. In January 2014 he was sentenced to four years in prison for "gathering crowds to disrupt public order". He was detained again on February 15, 2020, in the southern city of
Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong ...
after two months in hiding, for his participation in a meeting of rights activists and lawyers in
Xiamen Xiamen ( , ; ), also known as Amoy (, from Hokkien pronunciation ), is a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, People's Republic of China, beside the Taiwan Strait. It is divided into six districts: Huli, Siming, Jimei, Tong' ...
in December 2019 in which "democratic transition in China" was discussed.


Personal life

Xu was born in Minquan County,
Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...
Province in 1973. He was married to Cui Zheng (), a journalist. Their daughter was born on January 13, 2014, while Xu was in a detention center facing trial. He had been in hiding since late 2019 and was detained by Chinese police on February 15, 2020. In March of 2021, his partner
Li Qiaochu Li Qiaochu (; born 13 January 1991 in Beijing) is a Chinese labor and women's rights activist and researcher on labour issues. She was detained by authorities for four months in the first half of 2020 and again in February2021, in both cases on ...
was reported to have been arrested for tweeting that Xu and another activist had been tortured while in detention.


Career and activism

Xu received his Bachelor of Law degree from Lanzhou University in 1994 and Doctor of Law degree from
Peking University Peking University (PKU; ) is a public research university in Beijing, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education. Peking University was established as the Imperial University of Peking in 1898 when it received its royal charte ...
in 2002.


The Gongmeng era

In 2003, he was elected to the Haidian District People's Congress as an
independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independe ...
. He won the re-election in 2006. In the 2011 election, Xu's name was pulled off the candidate list, but he still gathered more than 3,500 votes out of 22,000 voters in his district. Xu helped found the public interest group Gongmeng, also known as the Open Constitution Initiative. Unlike other human rights activists, Xu firmly and carefully pushed his calls for political change and social justice in existing laws, and his group has been regarded as relatively cautious and conservative. In his recent interview before his arrest, he described his dream as follows: Xu's final remarks post trial also made rounds within Chinese dissident communities abroad in which he described goal of the New Citizens' Movement as follows:


The 2009 Gongmeng incident

On July 29, 2009, he was arrested at his home, and detained by Chinese authorities on charges of tax evasion. At the same time Xu's colleague
Zhuang Lu Zhuang may refer to: *Zhuang people (or Bouxcuengh people), ethnic group in China *Zhuang languages *Zhuang logogram *Zhuang Zhou, ancient Chinese philosopher *Zhuang (surname) (庄/莊), a Chinese surname {{disambiguation Language and nationality ...
was also arrested by authorities. The Open Constitution Initiative was fined 1.46 million RMB on July 14, 2009 for 'dodging taxes' and was shut down by the authorities by declaring it "illegal". Xu Zhiyong was released on bail on August 23, 2009. The Australian newspaper ''
The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territo ...
'' reported that the release of Xu, Zhuang and another Chinese dissident,
Ilham Tohti Ilham Tohti ( ug, ئىلھام توختى, lat=Ilham Toxti, yengi=Ilⱨam Tohti; ; born October 25, 1969) is a Uyghur economist serving a life sentence in China, on separatism-related charges. He is a vocal advocate for the implementation of ...
, was in part due to pressure on Beijing from the administration of American President
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...
.


Post-Gongmeng era, New Citizens' Movement

After Gongmeng was shut down, Xu Zhiyong and supporters adopted the name "Citizens" to continue their cause. In May 2012, Xu formally established the "New Citizens' Movement" and "New Citizens' Spirit" as the high-level concept of their activism. In 2013, Xu was placed under house arrest for more than three months, before being formally arrested on August 22. His trial started on January 22, 2014. Xu and his lawyer Zhang Qingfang remained silent throughout the trial (except for his closing statement) to protest the violation of basic legal procedure. Xu's closing statement was cut short by the judge, but the text was circulated on the internet and raised tremendous support. On January 26, Xu was sentenced to four years in prison for "gathering crowds to disrupt public order". Prior to the verdict, whose date had been expected, lawyer Zhang said about the case: "We can say it was decided even before the trial."


2020 arrest

Xu and other human rights activists were wanted by police for their participation in a meeting in
Xiamen Xiamen ( , ; ), also known as Amoy (, from Hokkien pronunciation ), is a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, People's Republic of China, beside the Taiwan Strait. It is divided into six districts: Huli, Siming, Jimei, Tong' ...
on December 13, 2019 where "democratic transition in China" was discussed. In February 2020, while in hiding, through postings on social media, Xu publicly asked
Chinese Communist Party The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Ci ...
general secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derive ...
Xi Jinping Xi Jinping ( ; ; ; born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has served as the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), and thus as the paramount leader of China, ...
to resign, for what he described as an obvious inability to handle the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...
. He was arrested in Guangzhou on February 15, 2020, according to two fellow activists. In November 2021, Liang Xiaojun, the lawyer of Xu, had his license cancelled by authorities, with the notification letter citing his online support for
Falun Gong Falun Gong (, ) or Falun Dafa (; literally, "Dharmachakra, Dharma Wheel Practice" or "Law Wheel Practice") is a new religious movement.Junker, Andrew. 2019. ''Becoming Activists in Global China: Social Movements in the Chinese Diaspora'', pp. 23 ...
and "vilifying" the Chinese constitution and laws. Liang said he had spoken a day earlier via video chat with Xu, who according to Liang was in good health and unshaken in his dissident convictions. On June 13, 2022, the Intermediate People’s Court of Linyi issued a notice of a pretrial meeting scheduled for June 17. Lawyers and a rights group said on June 17 that Xu would stand trial for "subversion" on June 22. He had been indicted on that charge in August 2021, and there had been no information about him since.


Prominent writings and speeches

* Xu Zhiyong's closing statement in court (January 22, 2014
ChineseEnglish
(translated by ChinaChange.org) * The Last Ten Years, China's rights movement through the work of Gong Meng
English
(translated by ChinaChange.org) * A trip to Ngaba, (the Tibetan prefecture in Northern Sichuan province where many Tibetans have self-immolated over the last four years or so. A shorter version of the essay was published in the New York Times in December 2012)
English
(translated by ChinaChange.org) * New Citizens' Movement, a "manifesto" published on May 29, 2012
English
translated by ChinaChange.org) * ''To Build a Free China: A Citizen's Journey'',
Lynne Rienner Publishers Lynne Rienner Publishers is an independent scholarly and textbook publishing firm based in Boulder, CO. It was founded in 1984 and remains one of the few independent publishers in the US. It publishes primarily in the fields of international s ...
, Boulder, Colorado, 2017.


Awards

* ''
Foreign Policy A state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterally or through ...
'' – Top 100 Global Thinkers, 2013 *
PEN America PEN America (formerly PEN American Center), founded in 1922 and headquartered in New York City, is a nonprofit organization that works to defend and celebrate free expression in the United States and worldwide through the advancement of liter ...
– PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award, 2020. Xu's partner
Li Qiaochu Li Qiaochu (; born 13 January 1991 in Beijing) is a Chinese labor and women's rights activist and researcher on labour issues. She was detained by authorities for four months in the first half of 2020 and again in February2021, in both cases on ...
, also an activist, accepted the award on his behalf in December 2020.


See also

* Weiquan movement *
New Citizens' Movement (China) The Chinese New Citizens' Movement () is a collection of numerous civil rights activists in mainland China since 2010. It is promoted by the loosely organized civil rights group "Citizens" (successor to the Open Constitution Initiative ()) with t ...


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Xu, Zhiyong 1973 births Living people People from Shangqiu Independent politicians in the People's Republic of China Chinese human rights activists Chinese dissidents Weiquan movement Chinese prisoners and detainees Prisoners and detainees of the People's Republic of China Lanzhou University alumni Peking University alumni