BEIJING (Agence France-Presse) — A former student leader of the 1989 Tiananmen Square democracy protests is in critical condition after a five-month hunger strike in his Shanghai prison cell, said a human rights group.
Zhang Ming, one of 21 student leaders wanted for their roles in the protests, was sentenced to seven years in jail in September for “abuse of executive benefits” apparently related to his company, Human Rights in China (HRIC) said in a statement midweek.
Sources close to Mr. Zhang say the charges were trumped up because Shanghai officials wanted him jailed, jealous of the profits that his Shanghai Ange Co. had made in recent years, the group said.
Besides being routinely beaten since detention last year, Mr. Zhang also lost about 50 pounds since beginning the hunger strike, the group said.
Mr. Zhang earlier served three years in prison after being convicted of “counterrevolutionary incitement” for a role in the 1989 protests and has refused to admit guilt or show remorse for his involvement in the democracy campaign.
However, after being released from his first conviction, Mr. Zhang had no trouble with the law until his latest arrest.
“The available information strongly suggests that Zhang Ming has been denied a fair trial on purely political grounds,” said HRIC President Liu Qing.
“It is completely unacceptable for the justice system to be used as a tool of political oppression. Zhang Ming should be granted a fair and open retrial and, in the meantime, he should be provided with all necessary medical attention to treat his fragile physical condition,” Mr. Liu said.
Yan Sham-Shackleton Online 