SW CHINA: CHENGDU ENVIRONMENTALIST INDICTED FOR BLOOD DRIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 CHENGDU 000141 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM PGOV SENV SUBJECT: SW CHINA: CHENGDU ENVIRONMENTALIST INDICTED FOR BLOOD DRIVE COMMEMORATING JUNE 4/TIANANMEN; TRIAL OF SECOND DISSIDENT BEGINS IN CHENGDU REF: A. A) 08 CHENGDU 98 ¶B. B) FBS20080527382725 CHENGDU 00000141 001.2 OF 003 ¶1. (SBU) Chengdu environmentalist Tan Zuoren, who organized protests against a USD 5.5 billion petrochemical plant near Chengdu (ref A) and published online politically sensitive lists of the numbers of children killed when their schools collapsed in the May 12, 2008 earthquake (ref B),was indicted July 17 in Chengdu. Tan, who had been arrested in Chengdu on March 28, was reportedly indicted not for his most high profile activities, but for incitement to subvert the state and the socialist system by slandering the government's handling of Tiananmen, and for running voluntary blood donation drives in memory of June 4th. Tan's wife obtained a copy of the indictment. Chengdu activist Ran Yunfei distributed the indictment and other information on the Tan's case on his blogs and on his Twitter channel at twitter.com/ranyunfei . Ran Yunfei wrote in his blogs that "In this country full of disasters and troubles, in this country that terrorizes people, any one of use could be Tan Zuoren", adding that freedom is something that must be won; people cannot expect that they can simply wait and receive it later as a gift. ¶2. (SBU) The indictment is translated in the appendix below. Ran believes that that Tan was indicted for June 4th activities by the local authorities rather than for his recent high profile activities in order to tie the hands of higher authorities who might not be willing to prosecute him for activities the local authorities find troublesome. Another Chinese blogger agreed, saying, "If they want to convict someone, any crime will do!" [yujia zhi zui, hehuan wuci] According to an August 1 Voice of America news report, Tan Zuoren's case will be tried on August 12 at the Chengdu Intermediate Court. Tan's lawyer, Hu Zhiqiang, told VOA that 55-year-old Tan Zuoren is in good spirits at the Chengdu Dujiangyan Detention Center. Tan is now working with his lawyer to prepare his defense. Chengdu Crackdowns: Huang Qi, Parents of Schoolchildren Killed in Sichuan Earthquake -------------- -------------- -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Tan's indictment occurred just as the trial of another Chengdu dissident, Huang Qi, is about to begin. Huang Qi was arrested on June 10, 2008 on "suspicion of possessing state secrets. " Huang Qi and his website -- 64tianwang.com -- originally won public attention by investigating missing persons and helping free several women who had been trafficked. He got into trouble last year apparently for remembrances of June 4th and for criticizing poor school construction standards that led to the death of many children in the May earthquake. On many occasions after the Sichuan earthquake, parents of schoolchildren who gathered to protest inadequate school construction standards in Dujiangyan and elsewhere were arrested, and otherwise strongly cautioned against making public protests or meeting journalists. Many parents protested the "bean curd construction" of schools that made the earthquake even more deadly in the weeks following the quake. Local officials throughout the quake zone reportedly intensified their crack down on protesting parents again around the one-year anniversary of the quake. Comment: Rare Sample of A Chinese Political Indictment -------------- -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Indictment in sensitive Chinese political cases are often not available, so this is useful as an example of the genre, as well as for understanding how Tan Zuoren's case is being handled. ¶5. (U) Appendix: Tan Zuoren Indictment: Consulate General Chengdu Translation Sichuan Province Chengdu People's Procuratorate Indictment Chengdu Procuratorate -- Indictment [2009]183 CHENGDU 00000141 002.2 OF 003 The indicted, Tan Zuoren, male, born May 15, 1954, PRC ID card no. 5101021954051611X, Han nationality, vocational school education, resides at No. 29 Wangjiang Road, Taolin Village, Building 6, No. 6. On March 28, 2009 he was placed under criminal detention according to the law. On April 24, 2009 because he was involved in the crime of inciting subversion of state power, he was, with the permission of the Chengdu Procuratorate, arrested according to law by Chengdu Public Security. An investigation carried out according to law has determined that: The indicted Tan Zuoren is dissatisfied with the methods and verdict of the Party Central Committee concerning the "June Fourth Incident" and for many years by various methods has been involved in "June Fourth" activities. On May 27, 2007, Tan Zuoren concocted an article entitled "1989: A Witness to the Last Beauty: An Eyewitness' Tiananmen Square Diary" and using the Internet put it on the website "Torch of Liberty" and other websites outside of China mainland. The main points of that article distorted the handling of the "June 4th Incident" by the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party and libeled it. Shortly after that article was posted, the enemy element outside mainland China Wang Dan contacted him by email and on several occasions sent him propaganda materials about "June Fourth". On June 4, 2008, the indicted Tan Zuoren and others on Chengdu's Tianfu Square commemorated "June 4th" by making voluntary blood donations and at that time agreed to a telephone interview request by the enemy radio station outside China mainland "Voice of Hope". Since November 2008, Wang Dan on many occasions sent him materials on commemorating the twentieth anniversary of "June 4th". On February 10, 2009, the indicted Tan Zuoren sent Wang Dan an email entitled "My Suggestions for Commemorating the Twentieth Anniversary of June 4th", suggesting that during this year's "June 4th" period that a "June 4th Global Chinese Blood Drive" be held to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of June 4th. After the "May 12th earthquake" of 2008, the indicted Tan Zuoren was interviewed many times by media from outside mainland China. On these occasions he said many things that severely harmed the image of our Party and government. On March 27th, the indicted Tan Zuoren was brought to justice by Public Security. Evidence proving the facts above are as follows: notes on identification of the indicted, notes on the taking into custody of the indicted, appraisals by experts, testimony of witnesses, deposition of the indicted. The Procuratorate believes that the indicted Tan Zuoren, in order to achieve his goal of subverting state power and overthrowing the socialist system fabricated things out of whole cloth, distorted news, and spread speech that is injurious to state power and the socialist system in order to damage the image of state power and the socialist system in the eyes of the people. This constitutes a crime under article 105 of the Criminal Code of the People's Republic of China. The crime is clear, the evidence is certain and abundant. Tan Zuoren should be prosecuted and convicted of the crime of inciting subversion of state power. As stipulated by Article 141 "Code of Criminal Procedure of the People's Republic of China", Tan Zuoren is indicted and it is hereby requested that he be prosecuted according to law. Hereby submitted to the Chengdu Intermediate People's Court Prosecutor Chen Shiti CHENGDU 00000141 003.2 OF 003 Assistant Prosecutor Wang Yihong July 17, 2009 Secretary Li Zhenzhen Notes: ¶1. The indicted Tan Zuoren is now confined in the Wenjiang District House of Detention ¶2. The list of evidence, photocopies of principal evidence are in one bound book. BROWN