Amnesty International fears for participants in a relay hunger strike in mainland China started by Mr Gao Zhisheng, a prominent Chinese human rights lawyer.
Through the hunger strikes Mr. Gao wished to draw attention to the recent beatings and detentions of human rights activists and lawyers in China. He and his family have also received abuse and intimidation since he publicly called on Chinese authorities to stop what he called the "barbaric" persecution of the Falun Gong spiritual movement. Since then, he has been subjected to periods of detention, threats and surveillance by the police. His law licence has been revoked and he narrowly escaped serious injury in a car accident on 17 January 2005, which he claimed was instigated by the communist authorities. His house remains under police surveillance and his home telephone and fax have now been reportedly been cut off.
Earlier this month Mr. Gao began fasting for 48 hours and was quickly joined by others wishing to show their solidarity, who took turns in fasting. Amnesty International says that some sources have suggested that the hunger strikers aim to carry on their protest until the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, by having a series of individuals and groups participating in turn.
Since February 4th several of the activists who have supported or participated in the protest hunger-strikes have been arrested or have gone missing.
Amnesty International has called upon the authorities to clarify the exact whereabouts of the abducted activists, guarantee their safety and free them unless they are charged with a recognisably criminal offence.
"Many of these activists are defending human rights," said Mark Allison, East Asia researcher at Amnesty International.
"The authorities must ensure that they are able to continue with their peaceful activities without fear of arbitrary detention, harassment or other human rights violations.
"These detentions and other abuses seriously undermine claims by the authorities to 'respect and protect human rights,' a new provision introduced into the Chinese Constitution in March 2004," Mr Allison said.
The several participants or supporters that have reportedly been detained or are missing include:
- Wen Haibo and Ma Wendu, assistants to Gao Zhisheng, who were reportedly detained on 16 February and interrogated for 48 and 20 hours respectively before being placed under tight police surveillance in their homes. Another assistant, Ouyang Xiaorong, a computer software programmer, was reportedly detained at the same time. He had just arrived in Beijing to help Gao Zhisheng. His current whereabouts remain unknown.
- Qi Zhiyong, a pro-democracy activist, who lost a leg as a result of the bloody crackdown on the 1989 pro-democracy movement in Beijing. He went missing at around 11pm on 15 February 2005. Unconfirmed reports suggest that he has been detained by Beijing state security police, but his current whereabouts are unknown.
- Prominent HIV/AIDS activist Hu Jia, who was reportedly taken away from his home by police on the morning of 16 February. It is unclear where he is being held.
- Mao Hengfeng, a Shanghai-based activist, who was detained by police on 13 February. The police later told her husband that she is being detained under 'residential surveillance' for 'causing a disturbance in a public place,' but reportedly refused to disclose where she was being detained.
- Ma Yalian, who was detained on 15 February by eight police officers at a friend's house in the Minxin district of Shanghai. Ma had been under tight surveillance since being released from ten days' police detention earlier this month. Ma Yalian had previously served a sentence of 18 months 'Re-education through Labour' (slave labor in a concentration camp) for posting articles on the Internet criticising China's inefficient petitioning system.
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