A Decade After China’s Crackdown on Lawyers, Persecution and Resistance Persist
While many remain in jail, the bravery of those at the forefront of pushing for the rule of law in China should not be forgotten.
Security officers surround Li Wenzu, the wife of detained Chinese human rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang, as she attempts to deliver a petition to the Supreme People's Court petition office in Beijing, December 28, 2018. Credit: AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein
Ten years ago, on July 9, 2015, China launched an unprecedented nationwide assault on its bravest legal professionals. In what came to be known as the “709 Crackdown”, hundreds of human rights lawyers, legal assistants, and activists were detained, disappeared, interrogated, and tortured. Their crime? Daring to believe that the Chinese constitution and law should apply equally to all citizens — including the government and the Chinese Communist Party.
A decade later, the memory of 709 r
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