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China government detains outspoken ex-Tiananmen Square soldier

By Bernard Hibbitts (editor) and University of Pittsburgh School of Law students.

[JURIST] The Chinese government on Friday detained a former soldier who has called for an investigation into the 1989 killings of pro-democracy protesters at Tiananmen Square. Chinese human rights organization Civil Rights and Livelihood Watch (CRLW) said that Zhang Shijun, a former member of the Chinese army's 162nd motorized infantry division, has been detained (CRLW report, in Chinese] after he wrote an open letter to Chinese Premier Hu Jintao calling for an investigation into the killings. Zhang was recently interviewed about the events of that day, lamenting his own role, and was then detained by local authorities. A report by Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD) suggests that Chinese authorities have intensified arrests of dissidents because of the approaching 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square protests. The Tiananmen protests began in April 1989 with mainly students and laborers protesting the Communist Party of China. The Chinese government declared martial law in May, and initiated the violent dispersal of protesters by the People's Liberation Army on June 4. The government has never publicized official figures, but the Hong Kong-based Information Center for Human Rights & Democracy reported last June that unnamed sources had estimated 600 people were killed. Rights groups have continued to urge the Chinese government to release the remaining imprisoned protesters.

Full post as published by JURIST - The Paper Chase on March 20, 2009 (boomark / email).