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China sentences quake activist to five
years in prison
AP, BEIJING
Wednesday, Feb 10, 2010, Page 1
A Chinese court yesterday sentenced an activist who investigated the deaths of
thousands of schoolchildren in the country¡¦s massive 2008 earthquake to five
years in jail for inciting subversion of state power, the man¡¦s lawyer said.
The US deplored the sentence handed down to Tan Zuoren (ÃÓ§@¤H) by a court in
Sichuan Province, saying such convictions were politically motivated and urging
China to immediately release the activist and others similarly prosecuted.
Attorney Pu Zhiqiang (®ú§Ó±j) said Tan was convicted and sentenced yesterday by the
Chengdu Intermediate Court. Tan¡¦s trial in August had concluded with no ruling,
during which police detained and threatened his supporters.
The conviction of inciting subversion of state power was based on Tan¡¦s
activities in recent years to draw attention to the 1989 student-led
demonstrations in Beijing¡¦s Tiananmen Square that ended in a deadly military
crackdown. China routinely uses such broad and vaguely defined charges of
subversion to imprison dissidents, sometimes for years.
But Tan¡¦s supporters and human rights groups believe authorities were trying to
silence him for his investigation into the collapse of schools in the
7.9-magnitude earthquake that struck in Sichuan in May 2008. Tan estimated at
least 5,600 students were among the dead, while a figure released by the
government last May put the count at 5,335.
Tan, 56, started his investigation in December 2008 and hoped to complete it
before the May 12 anniversary of the quake the following year, but he was
detained in late March.
¡§Tan thinks one of the reasons behind this case is that he was leading an
investigation into the poorly built schools after the earthquake, which would
have embarrassed the local government in Chengdu,¡¨ Pu said.
Critics allege that shoddy construction, enabled by corruption, caused several
schools to collapse while buildings nearby remained intact ¡X a politically
sensitive theory that the government has tried to quash, fearing it could
undermine the admiration and goodwill it earned after its massive rescue effort.
But activists and parents have repeatedly demanded those responsible for shoddy
construction be investigated and punished. Those who¡¦ve pressed the issue have
been detained, harassed and threatened by police and thugs believed to be hired
by local officials.
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