The Guangdong Province Supreme People's Court announced on 6 June 2017 that it has rejected motions to appeal the guilty verdicts of human rights defenders Su Changlan and Chen Qitang. The court's announcement is the latest in a series of violations of procedural and judicial rights perpetrated against the two defenders since their detention in 2014. Prior to their arrests, Su Changlan and Chen Qitang spent years supporting victims of human rights violations in Guangdong Province. Both provided assistance to local landowners in preparing legal cases against government land appropriation, and in 2014 the two defenders were cooperating in an effort to document cases of domestic violence in Guangdong. Su Changlan's arrest in October 2014 was likely a response to this project; Chen Qitang was arrested one month later, largely due to his association with Su Changlan. Although Su Changlan and Chen Qitang were tried in separate legal proceedings, the Chinese court system has processed their cases in tandem over the course of their three-year judicial process. In April 2016, over a year after their 2014 arrests, both defenders were tried by the Foshan Intermediate People's Court under charges of "inciting subversion of state authority". On 31 March 2017, almost a year after the conclusion of trial proceedings, both defenders were found guilty and issued prison sentences: Su Changlan for three years, and Chen Qitang for four years and six months. Both defenders also received three-year suspensions of their political rights. Under Chinese law, courts are required to hold a session when defendants or their legal representatives have raised objections to facts or evidence employed in the first-instance trial; both defenders and their lawyers raised such objections through formal written requests for appeal submitted to the court. Their requests were rejected. In addition, the Guangdong court's decision to reject the appeals was conducted in secret, involving no hearing for the defenders or discussion with their lawyers. Decisions by a second-instance court to reject an appeal cannot be appealed again, meaning that Su Changlan and Chen Qitang have no choice but to serve out their original sentences. Su Changlan's three-year sentence will conclude in October 2017; Chen Qitang's four-year-six-month sentence will likely conclude in May 2019. UPDATE: On 26 June 2017, the health of jailed Chinese rights activist Su Changlan has deteriorated rapidly in prison. She has hyperthyroidism and heart problems and need medication.