In China, Witness Is Held After Saying His Testimony Against Activist Was Forced
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BEIJING — A witness who claimed that he was coerced into testifying against a blind Chinese activist has been taken away by local police on the eve of a retrial of the case, the activist’s lawyer said yesterday.
Chen Gengjiang testified in the case of Chen Guangcheng, who was sentenced to four years in prison after being convicted in August of damaging property and “organizing a mob to disturb traffic.”
The activist’s lawyer, Li Jinsong, said the witness “told me he had been tortured to say Chen made him smash the van. Now, he’s been taken away the day before the retrial. We’re worried the police will threaten or torture him again.”
The case of Chen Guangcheng, who is a rights advocate who documented claims of forced abortions, has been criticized by human-rights activists as an example of official retaliation and unjust imprisonment of dissidents based on phony charges.
Earlier this month, an intermediate court where the blind activist filed an appeal overturned the sentence and sent it back to a lower court. The retrial was scheduled to begin today.
During the first trial, Chen Gengjiang said the activist had asked him to smash a police van and cause a disturbance, Mr. Li said.
Mr. Li said the witness later told him he had been forced by police to testify against the activist. It was not clear if the two men named Chen are related, but people living in the same village often share common surnames.
A woman who answered the telephone at the Yinan County police station said the office was closed and that no one could confirm the arrest.
China’s official Xinhua News Agency has reported that the activist instigated an attack on government offices in Yinan County because he was upset with workers sent to carry out povertyrelief programs.
The activist, 34, was accused of getting several members of his family to help damage police cars, Xinhua said. It said his relatives gathered a bigger group that smashed windows at a police station, overturned cars and beat police officers.
Mr. Chen’s supporters said authorities fabricated the charges against him to retaliate after he documented complaints that officials who were trying to enforce the country’s birthcontrol regulations forced villagers to have late-term abortions and sterilizations. Although such practices are illegal, local officials often resort to drastic measures for fear of being punished for failing to meet birth quotas.
Mr. Chen’s five-member defense team boycotted the initial trial after three of the team’s members were detained by police on theft charges the night before the trial.