Tan Zuoren

Tan Zuoren
谭作人/譚作人
Born (1954-05-15) 15 May 1954 (age 70)
Chengdu, Sichuan, China
NationalityChinese
Occupation(s)human rights activist, writer
Criminal statusreleased
Conviction(s)Inciting subversion of state power (February 9, 2010)
Criminal penalty5 years in jail and 3 years deprived of political rights
CommentsTan Zuoren official blog

Tan Zuoren (born 15 May 1954), from Chengdu, Sichuan province, People's Republic of China, is an environmentalist, writer and former editor of Literati magazine (文化人).[1]

On February 9, 2010, Zuoren was sentenced to 5 years in prison for "inciting subversion of state power."[2] Amnesty International Asia-Pacific Deputy Director said: “His arrest, unfair trial and now the guilty verdict are further disturbing examples of how the Chinese authorities use vague and over broad laws to silence and punish dissenting voices.”[3] Due to the nature of the charges and circumstances of the trial, he has been described as a political prisoner.[4][5]

  1. ^ Chinadigitaltimes.com. "Chinadigitaltimes.com." Cui Weiping (崔卫平)： Self-initiated and Idealistic Thinking and Action. Retrieved on August 12, 2009.
  2. ^ "China sentences activist who investigated children's deaths in 2008 quake to 5 years' jail"[dead link]. Gillian Wong, The Canadian Press, retrieved on February 9, 2009.
  3. ^ "China: Free human rights activist jailed after unfair trial" Archived February 20, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. Amnesty International, February 9, 2010.
  4. ^ Congressional-Executive Commission on China, Political Prisoner Database:Tan Zuoren Archived November 3, 2010, at the Wayback Machine.
  5. ^ Sophie Richardson, Statement of Sophie Richardson, Asia Advocacy Director, Human Rights Watch, testimony given before the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, 3 August 2010.