Chinese #MeToo activist Huang sentenced to five years in prison for subversion, supporters say

By David Kirton and Laurie Chen

GUANGZHOU/BEIJING (Reuters) – Prominent Chinese #MeToo activist Huang Xueqin was sentenced to five years in prison after being found guilty of state subversion by a court in southern China on Friday, according to a group campaign for his release and a copy of the document. court verdict.

Huang, a 35-year-old independent journalist, plans to appeal her conviction, her supporters said. Labor activist Wang Jianbing, 40, who was also tried with Huang, was sentenced to three years and six months. It was not immediately clear whether he would appeal.

“(The sentence) was longer than expected,” said a spokesperson for the Free Huang Xueqin and Wang Jianbing campaign group, asking to remain anonymous for security reasons.

“I don't think it should have been this serious, and it's completely unnecessary. So we support Huang Xueqin's intention to appeal.”

Detained by Chinese authorities since September 2021, the two men were tried last year. Both men denied any wrongdoing during the closed-door trial, their supporters said.

The sedition charges against the two men were based on the rallies they often organized for Chinese youth at which they discussed social issues.

“Their efforts and dedication to work, women's rights and civil society as a whole will not be undone by this unjust trial, nor will society forget their contributions. On the contrary, as oppression persists and injustice grows, more and more activists like them will continue to take action. ” the campaign group, made up mainly of activists based abroad, said in a statement before the verdict.

There was a heavy security presence around the Guangzhou Intermediate People's Court on Friday morning, with police questioning passersby.

The charge of “inciting subversion of state power” is frequently used by the Chinese government against dissidents and carries a maximum prison sentence of five years, but can be longer if the suspect is considered a leader or having committed serious crimes.

The day before his arrest, on September 19, 2021, Huang was due to fly to Britain to start a master's degree at the University of Sussex on a scholarship funded by the British government, the campaign group said.

Huang, who covered China's #MeToo allegations and Hong Kong's anti-government protests in 2019, was detained by Chinese police for three months in late 2019.

The two activists were placed in solitary confinement for several months, their supporters have already said. Guangzhou police did not respond to a faxed request for comment.

(Reporting by Laurie Chen and David Kirton; writing by Laurie Chen; editing by Edwina Gibbs)