Chinese scholars abroad slam Beijing’s jailing and torture of alleged whistleblowers
蘋果日報 2021/05/28 05:26
A group of overseas Chinese scholars condemned Beijing over its 14-year jail term for a young internet user who allegedly revealed details about the family of China’s President Xi Jinping said to be living double lives.
Niu Tengyu, 22, is being locked up for purportedly posting personal information about Xi’s daughter and brother-in-law. He is one of 24 young netizens thrown behind bars during a crackdown in August 2019.
In a statement released on Tuesday, the Independent Federation of Chinese Students and Scholars “strongly condemned” the torture of Niu at the hands of the authorities and called on members of the public to write letters and postcards to support him.
“We strongly condemn the Chinese Communist Party and authorities for unleashing political revenge on this group of young people, and we commend Niu Tengyu for his courage in the face of torture,” the statement read. “In this difficult time, we stand with Niu, his persecuted young friends and their families.”
The federation expressed anger over Niu’s treatment, including beatings and sexual assault while in police custody, as well as the unjust and heavy 14-year sentence passed down in court. It accused the family members of party leader Xi for living double lives and said that the deceived public had a right to know.
Personal details of Xi’s daughter Xi Mingze and the family of Xi’s brother-in-law were exposed on two overseas Chinese websites, Zhina.wiki and Zhina.red, in May 2019.
That August, Maoming city police in Guangdong province arrested Niu and other alleged members of the “evil wiki” sites.
Twenty-four people were convicted in December the same year. Niu was jailed for picking quarrels and provoking trouble, violating citizens’ private information and operating an illegal business.
Earlier this month, Niu’s mother took a risk and traveled to Guangdong in hopes of visiting her son after reports indicated that his life was in danger due to torture injuries. The young man was allowed to see his mother for the first time since being arrested in 2019 and showed signs of being tortured.
Security bureau officers later paid a visit to the mother. Niu’s two lawyers, Bao Longjun and Wang Yu, were also detained after filing a complaint over his mistreatment while in detention.
The federation was founded in 1989 in the United States as a response to Tiananmen Square protests that year, with a goal to promote democracy in China.
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