Chinese lawyer Ren Quanniu has had his lawyer’s license revoked after he represented citizen journalist Zhang Zhan and 12 people from Hong Kong who fled the city of Shenzhen. He has received notification from the Justice Department of Henan Province in China that his license has been revoked.
Ren Quanniu, one of the lawyers involved in the “Zhang Zhan” and “Shenzhen 12 Hong Kong people” cases, received a notice from China’s Henan judicial authorities to revoke his lawyer’s license today.
But the notice did not mention the two hot cases, accusing him of violating a provision of the Law when he represented a case in 2018. Therefore, his lawyer’s practice certificate was revoked.
Zhang Zhan, a citizen journalist, went to Wuhan in February last year to report on the epidemic and disclosed a lot of information to the outside world that was not available in the state media. Last May, she was arrested at Wuhan railway station and taken to Shanghai’s Pudong Detention Centre. Zhang Zhanyi is on hunger strike.
Ren, as one of the lawyers representing Zhang’s case, went to the detention center on December 17 to meet with her and publicly announced zhang’s poor health due to the hunger strike. On December 28, after a few hours of trial, the court sentenced Zhang to four years in prison for “causing a disturbance”.
Ren told AFP that Zhang “looked very sad” after the sentencing and was “shocked. I didn’t expect it to be this heavy”. He said the sentence was unreasonable and too heavy. He told CNA that an appeal should be lodged against the verdict.
After citizen journalist Zhang Zhan was sentenced to four years in prison for independently reporting on the epidemic in Wuhan, international media outlets in Europe, America, Australia, Japan and South Korea, Turkey, India and other countries gave them coverage.
In addition, Ren Quanniu is also a lawyer hired by the families of 12 Hong Kong people in Shenzhen. Hong Kong 01 reported Thursday that Ren quanniu is a lawyer appointed by the family of Huang Weiran, one of the 12 Hong Kong people. Ren Quanniu received a notice from the Justice Department of Henan Province today (January 4) to revoke his professional qualification, citing that he violated the Administrative Measures on the Practice of Lawyers when he represented a case in 2018.
The Yantian Court in Shenzhen, China, on Wednesday sentenced 10 of 12 Hong Kong residents to jail terms ranging from seven months to three years for taking part in smuggling across the border.
According to AFP, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo issued a statement Thursday sharply condemning Chinese authorities for imprisoning and sentencing 10 adults of 12 Hong Kong people who tried to flee Hong Kong by boat. Pompeo called for the “immediate and unconditional release” of the Hong Kong people who are supposed to be “heroes.” In a statement, Pompeo said, “A regime that prevents its own people from leaving cannot claim greatness or claim to be the leader of the world. “This is just a fragile dictatorship that fears its own people.”
The suspension of the license of Ren Quanniu, a lawyer who represented Zhang Zhan and the 12 Hong Kong people, shows that Chinese authorities now appear to be afraid of lawyers representing sensitive cases.
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