Yang Tongyan, China

Yang Tongyan, a freelance writer and member of the Independent Chinese Pen Centre (ICPC) was convicted of subversion in a three-hour closed trial on May 16, 2006. In its verdict the Zhenjiang Intermediate Court in Jiangsu province cited evidence that Yang had posted anti-government articles on the Internet, organized branches of the outlawed China Democracy Party, and accepted illegal funds from foreign sources. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison and four years’ deprivation of political rights. Yang has often criticised the Chinese government in articles published in the Epoch Times and at websites like Boxun.com. Between 1990 and 2000 he was jailed on counter-revolution charges because of his involvement in the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. His previous conviction may have to have contributed to the severity of his current sentence. He was also previously held incommunicado from December 24, 2004 to January 25, 2005.

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