U.S. Mission to International
Organizations in Geneva

Xu Zhiyong Appeal Rejected by Chinese Appellate Court

The United States is deeply disappointed that a Chinese appellate court has upheld the four-year prison sentence for prominent legal scholar and rights advocate Xu Zhiyong as retribution for his public campaign to expose official corruption and for the peaceful expression of his views.

As the United States has previously stated, we remain deeply concerned that the prosecution of Xu and others is part of a deepening pattern of arrests and detentions of public interest lawyers, Internet activists, labor activists, journalists, religious leaders and others who peacefully challenge official Chinese policies and actions.

We call on Chinese authorities to release Xu and other political prisoners immediately, remove restrictions on their freedom of movement, and guarantee them the protections and freedoms to which they are entitled under China’s international human rights commitments.