[Your name here]

 

Dear Sir

 

RE: Treatment of Mr Zheng Enchong

 

I want to express my concern about the treatment of Chinese lawyer Mr Zheng Enchong. 

 

IDHAE received a number of reports indicating that Mr Zheng is facing harassment, intimidation, unlawful detention and physical assault. More specifically, we have received reports that   on June 17 2009, Zheng Enchong was summoned by four officers from Zhabei District Branch of Shanghai Municipal Public Security Bureau and that during his detention on June 17, Zheng Enchong he was beaten, stripped and cigarettes were held to his lips and eyelids. Zheng Enchong has filed a written protest and plans to file a complaint to the central government.

 

Reports suggest that Police officers slapped Zheng's face repeatedly, hit the back of his head and tried to burn his lips and eyelids with cigarettes, Poon said. At one point, the officers pulled him up from his chair, kicked off his shoes and stripped him, leaving him standing in only his briefs.Officers then threw the contents of his pockets onto the floor, including money, keys, a pen and the Bible that Zheng, a devout Christian, was carrying.

 

Zheng's detention appeared to be linked to his work with the League of Chinese Victims, which seeks to draw attention to forced evictions in Shanghai and this was Zheng has been detained 62 times since he was released from prison in June 2006 after serving a two-year sentence, but the latest incident was the most violent.

 

I am concerned that China is not observing its international and domestic obligations to protect lawyers.

 

I would like to draw your attention to articles 33 and 35 of the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China. Article 33 states that ‘The State respects and preserves human rights’. Article 35 provides that ‘Citizens of the People’s Republic of China enjoy free of speech, of the press, of assembly, of association, of procession and of demonstration’.
We would also like to remind you of the Laws of the People’s Republic of China on lawyers. Article 2 states that ‘Lawful actions by lawyers shall be protected by law’. Further, Article 32 emphasises that ‘The lawyer’s right of the person shall not be violated’.

 

The United Nations Basic Principles on the Rule of Law provides standards by which lawyers worldwide should be treated. According to principle 16, ‘governments shall ensure that lawyers are able to perform all of their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference’. Furthermore, principle 18 emphasises that ‘lawyers shall not be identified with their clients or their clients’ causes as a result of discharging their functions’. Under principle 23, ‘lawyers like other citizens are entitled to freedom of expression, belief, association and assembly’, and ‘they shall have the right to take part in public discussion of matters concerning the law, the administration of justice and the promotion and protection of human rights’.

 

I request that your Government immediately reveals any information it has regarding the treatment of Mr Zheng Enchong, and the details of any lawful charge against him. We would like to receive your assurances that his treatment to date is promptly investigated and that, if found to be improper, it ceases immediately.

 

Furthermore, I urge the Chinese authorities to ensure that human rights defenders and lawyers can carry out their peaceful and legitimate professional and personal activities without fear of arbitrary detention, torture or ill-treatment, or other human rights violations, in compliance with internationally recognised rights standards.

 

I look forward to your response.

 

Yours sincerely

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