Protest Against Suppression of Human Rights Lawyers

Chinese appellants organized a large protest near the South Beijing Railway Station on June 20, to show support for human rights lawyers disbarred by the Chinese regime. The regime mobilized hundreds of police and security staff to block the restricted zone and to disperse them.

The protest started about 9:00 a.m. An organizer said about 1,000 appellants from around the country turned out for the protest. They shouted slogans, passed out brochures and displayed banners with the words, “Lawyers Care for Us, We Care For Them, Stop the Suppression of Lawyers, and Release Detained Appellants.”

Not long before and after June 4, the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre, over 20 Chinese rights lawyers lost their licenses because the Bar Association said they did not pass the annual assessment. Many appellants were also rounded up during this sensitive period.

The regime apparently received a tip about the protest beforehand. It sent 200 police, security guards, and dozens of police vehicles to the location and removed about 20 appellants at the beginning, and setup barriers to block the rest of the appellants.

The appellants finally broke through the barriers and marched toward the People’s Supreme Court, the march lasted till 4:00 p.m. after police dispersed them.

Read this article in Chinese.