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The Supreme Court today upheld incitement convictions of prominent unionist Rong Chhun and activists Sar Kanika and Ton Nimol, who remain under restrictive probation.

Chhun, who has spent years defending labour rights in Cambodia, was arrested after making a statement about the Cambodia-Vietnam border in 2020. His detention triggered a wave of further arrests of activists in Cambodia, including of Kanika and Nimol who were jailed after joining peaceful demonstrations in August and October 2020 respectively. The three were released in November 2021 and given three years of probation with a range of conditions limiting their freedoms.

The Phnom Penh Municipal Court had convicted the three activists of incitement under Articles 494 and 495 of the Criminal Code in August 2021. The Phnom Penh Appeal Court suspended parts of their sentences in November 2021, ordering them to serve from over 14 months to over 15 months in prison and to pay 2 million riel (US$500) each in fines as well as jointly pay 400 million riel (US$100,000) in damages.

The Supreme Court upheld all elements of the Appeal Court’s earlier judgement this morning. Chhun, Kanika and Nimol were not present in the courtroom as the verdict was read.

In a separate case, the Supreme Court this morning also upheld incitement convictions against former Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) activists Ton Nimol, Lim San, Yoy Mom, Sat Pha, Pai Ren, San Chan Sreyneat and Hong An. The charges followed their participation in a peaceful protest outside the Chinese Embassy in Phnom Penh in October 2020.

An activist of the Inter-University Students Union and the 'GotaGoGama’, Anthony Veranga Pushpika has been arrested by the Colombo South Divisional Crime Detective Bureau (DCDB) today in connection with causing damages to public property during a recent protest near the Police Headquarters.

It was reported on social media that the activist who was returning on a bus after taking part in a demonstration in Colombo had been forcibly taken away by an unidentified group in a blue coloured jeep in Fort.

However, the OIC of the Colombo South Division said there was no truth in him being abducted. He said the police had taken him into custody and he will be produced in court by the Fort Police.

Veranga Pushpika was also the former President of Ruhunu Maha Shishya Sangamaya.

The former director of the SENA (Southeast and North Asia) Institute of Technology Research and Development has been placed under house arrest and banned from leaving Vietnam amid a probe into allegations of ‘abusing democratic freedoms’ for submitting a series of recommendations on improving the ruling Communist Party of Vietnam.

On Wednesday the Ministry of Public Security said the Investigation Security Agency had decided to probe Nguyen Son Lo, 74, under Article 331 of the Criminal Code.

The ministry did not explain why the investigation had been launched, saying the Investigation Security Agency was “focusing on investigating, collecting documents, and consolidating evidence on the criminal acts of the accused and related individuals … according to the provisions of law."

Lo’s close friend Nguyen Khac Mai, director of the Hanoi-based Minh Triet Cultural Research Center, said his colleague was a highly-decorated war hero who turned to study and offered his insights on the situation of the country and ways to improve people’s lives.

"Recently he founded a think-tank on cultural research and development,” said Mai.

“He told us ‘the issue of culture has become a huge issue these days for the nation’ so he wanted to contribute to this field.”

He said his friend had written a number of books to advise the country’s leaders, offering recommendations on Vietnam’s economy and culture.

“The Central Inspection Commission [of the ruling Communist Party of Vietnam] came to SENA to work with him and confirmed they had not forbidden him from expressing his opinions or making recommendations. They just asked him not to spread them widely," Mai said.

Lo was advised not to send his books to provincial Party secretaries or National Assembly deputies. He was told to send them internally to bodies such as the Central Organizing Commission, the Central Inspection Commission, the Central Commission on Propaganda and Education, the Secretariat and the Politburo of the Party’s Central Committee.

According to Mai, Lo agreed to send his comments only to responsible officials but did not understand why he was being investigated.

Last year, Bach Thong district police in Bac Kan province, published an article titled "Suggestions to build the Party or act against the Party." The article referred to the SENA Institute and claimed it had written an open letter about the 13th National Congress of the Party expressing incorrect and distorted views on Party and State.

Mai said his colleague was not acting against the Party.

"He only has a constructive mind. He wants to contribute, correct mistakes, improve, make this Party and government more civilized and cultured, more humane, more popular, and kinder.”

“That's his aspiration and I think 90 to 100 million people also want the same. No one wants to overthrow the regime, they just want it to be better.”

“Less corruption, more humanity, less immoral behavior, no land grabbing but negotiation and proper compensation. That is his wish like mine and others," said Mai.

On July 4, the Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations issued a decision to suspend the operations of the institute and take steps to abolish it, saying its establishment and operations violated regulations.

According to Mai, SENA is a civil society organization, legally registered with the state and its members are former high-ranking cadres such as Nguyen Manh Can, former deputy head of the Central Organizing Commission of the Communist Party of Vietnam.

The Supreme Court has sentenced an indigenous Karen woman to 2 years and 8 months in prison for encroaching on National Park land despite pleas that the piece of land was passed down through her family.

Wansao Phungam is an indigenous Karen woman who lives in Tha Salao village in Nong Ya Plong District, Phetchaburi Province – one of the indigenous Karen communities on the edge of the Kaeng Krachan National Park. She has been living and working on a piece of land she inherited from her parents, and insisted that she has never encroached on the National Park. But when the government launched the One Map Project in 2016, the borders of Kaeng Krachan National Park were redrawn and Wansao’s land was included inside the Park.

The Kaeng Krachan National Park is Thailand’s largest national park. Along with Kui Buri National Park, the Chaloem Prakiat Thai Prachan National Park, and the Maenam Pachi Wildlife Sanctuary, it makes up the Kaeng Krachan Forest Complex, which covers 482,225 hectares of forest in three provinces.

The forest complex included several indigenous Karen communities both in the conservation zone and in the nearby area, containing over 5000 households. Tha Salao village is one of these communities. Many of its community members have faced and are still facing legal prosecution as the authorities claim they have encroached on forest land.

In July 2021, the Kaeng Krachan Forest Complex was named a World Heritage site despite ongoing concerns about human rights violatin against these indigenous communities.

Wansao said that other plots of land around hers have a Certificate of Utilization, but her parents had never obtained the document as they have 7 children and her father was sick, so her mother was not able to travel into town to get the certificate. She noted that no one else who lives on land around hers is being prosecuted.

In August 2018, Wansao was arrested for encroaching on National Park land. The Court of First Instance sentenced her to 3 years and 8 months in prison and a fine of over 2 million baht. Although the Appeal Court later dismissed her case, for the past three years while she has been fighting her case, Wansao has not been able to live on her land and had to leave her home behind.

The public prosecutor then appealed to the Supreme Court. Today (27 July), the Supreme Court overturned the Appeal Court’s dismissal of Wansao’s case and sentenced her to 2 years and 8 months in prison. She must pay a fine of 3.1 million baht and leave her land. Her house and all other buildings on the land must also be demolished.

Transborder News reported that other community members attended the hearing, and found the ruling unexpected as the Appeal Court had already dismissed the charges against Wansao.

Wansao is one of thousands of people affected by the National Council for Peace and Order’s forest reclamation policy. According to the activist network People’s Movement for a Just Society (P-Move), there are at least 34,692 cases in which an individual has been sued for encroaching on National Parks and protected forests and evicted from their land.

Following Wansao’s imprisonment, P-Move issued a statement condemning the government for the forest reclamation policy, which aims for 40% of the country to be forest area, and called on the authorities to end repeal all laws, orders, and policies which are part of the forest reclamation policy to allow the public to participate in the creation of a new land rights law.

P-Move also called on parliament to launch an investigation into the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE)’s budget and 2023 year plan, as it appeared that they are still following a forest conservation model from 2014, and that its budget for crackdown on encroachment is 8 times the budget allocated to solving land right issues. A new law must be drafted to pardon everyone unfairly prosecuted due to a government policy.

Several dozen people mobbed the Yangon residences of the parents of two recently executed activists on Wednesday, in an apparently coordinated act of intimidation by pro-junta forces.

The targets were the parents of Phyo Zayar Thaw, a former National League for Democracy MP, and Ko Jimmy, a veteran of the 1988 student uprising, who were among four dissidents executed over the weekend.

In a video shared by pro-regime groups on social media, a mob can be seen throwing rocks and firing slingshots at the second-story apartment of Phyo Zayar Thaw’s parents in Yangon’s Kyauktada Township.

As some members of the crowd swear and shout the word “traitors,” one attacker can be heard screaming: “We will kill your whole family!”

Another video, also widely circulated on social media, shows a similar scene in front of the home of Ko Jimmy’s parents in Insein Township.

“You think your son is a martyr? What can you say about the bereaved family members of those your son killed?” shouts one man in the video, as others pelt the house with eggs.

According to a source who spoke to Myanmar Now on condition of anonymity, the group arrived in seven vehicles, including five light trucks, armed with knives and sticks.

Residents of both areas said that no effort was made by the authorities to disperse the crowds, despite the heavy military presence in Yangon since last year’s coup.

One observer noted that Phyo Zayar Thaw’s parents live a short distance from the colonial-era Secretariat building, where there is a checkpoint manned by soldiers.

The incidents appear to be in support of the junta’s official narrative regarding the executions, which have stunned many in the country and met with international condemnation.

They come just one day after junta spokesperson General Zaw Min Tun said at a press conference that the four individuals were executed for “criminal activities they committed and in pursuit of justice for the victims they killed.”

Mya Thaw, the father of Phyo Zayar Thaw, declined to comment on Wednesday’s incident.

“I request everyone to understand our situation,” he said.

Thazin Nyunt Aung, the partner of Phyo Zayar Thaw, expressed concern for the safety of his parents.

“I am extremely worried about them now… We all need to help his parents,” she said.

Aakash Hassan, an independent Kashmiri journalist alleged being stopped from travelling abroad on Tuesday at IGI airport, New Delhi.

“Immigration officials at IGI airport New Delhi barred me from boarding a flight to Colombo, Sri Lanka. I was headed to report on the current crises in the country. The immigration officials took my passport, and boarding pass and made me sit in a room for the last four hours. The officials are not giving any me any reason for why I am not allowed. A staff from the airlines I was travelling in told me that officials have directed them to offload my luggage from the aircraft. I was questioned by two officials about my background, travel purpose,” he tweeted.

“After making me wait for five hours, without providing even water to drink. I have been handed over my passport and boarding pass with a red rejection stamp: “Cancelled Without Prejudice”,” he further said.

Sanna Irshad Mattoo, a Pulitzer award-winning Kashmiri photojournalist was also reportedly not allowed to fly from Delhi to Paris here on July 2, 2022.

Father Jeevantha Peiris was sanctioned along with other activists for filing a complaint in connection with violence by pro-government supporters on 9 May at the protest camp set up near the Presidential Secretariat. The government wants “to make the victims more vulnerable,” the priest told AsiaNews, but “the struggle cannot be stopped”.

A Sri Lankan court has imposed a travel ban on a Catholic priest for his participation in the protests against President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

On Tuesday, together with other activists, Fr Amila Jeevantha Peiris has his passport cancelled.

Known in Colombo for his commitment to human rights, he joined protesters who set up the "GotaGoGama" village, a protest camp located not far from the Presidential Secretariat building, demanding President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's resignation due to the worsening of the country's economic situation.

“The government is sending another message that they want to make the victims more vulnerable,” Fr Peiris explained. “But, whatever they say, whatever they try to do to us, we say that the struggle cannot be stopped by such intimidation."

Protests, the clergyman notes, will end only when the president but also the new prime minister Ranil Wickramasinghe resign.

The court order was reportedly issued to allow further investigation into a complaint filed by Fr. Pieris and others about attacks by pro-government supporters on peaceful protesters on 9 May.

“At a time when there are a number of burning issues in the country that need to be addressed urgently”, the authorities choose “to impose a travel ban on a group, including Father Jeewantha Peiris,” said Bishop Asiri Perera, former president of the Methodist Church of Sri Lanka, speaking to AsiaNews.

"I have seen Father Jeevantha unite with the various youth on the battlefield and engage in very deep dialogue, directing the youth community to move on to peaceful new paths,” the bishop explained. “We should not only give them more strength but also prevent further tragedies in Sri Lanka.”

Sister Deepa Fernando, a human rights activist who heads the Holy Family Convent, “strongly condemn[ed] the Rajapaksa regime's deliberate attack on unarmed peaceful protestors, like Father Jeevantha Pieris and the team.”

Passports were cancelled after “Father Jeevantha and the young group filed a complaint against the attackers,” she explained. He promoted “interreligious dialogue and participated in a variety of cultural and religious activities. So, is the travel ban a gift for that good work”?

“The sad thing is that the judiciary and politics have come together, but the judiciary should stand for the victims,” said Fr Marimuttu Sathivel, an Anglican priest. Still, “We shall stand with Father Jeevantha and the team who are fighting at the GotagoGama”.

On July 26, police in New Delhi ordered Nair to appear in a court in Gandhinagar, the capital of the western state of Gujarat, on July 29, according to multiple news reports and the journalist, who spoke to CPJ in a phone interview. The police presented Nair with a bailable arrest warrant, which required his presence in court but did not mandate his arrest, according to those sources.

Nair, a frequent contributor to the news websites The Wire, Newsclick, and Janata Ka Report, was summoned in response to a complaint filed in Gandhinagar by Adani Group, a multinational business conglomerate that he has covered in his reporting, according to those sources.

“The criminal defamation suit by Adani Group against freelance journalist Ravi Nair is an attack on press freedom and a part of the conglomerate’s tactic of initiating strategic litigation against journalists,” said Carlos Martinez de la Serna, CPJ’s program director, in Madrid. “India’s authorities must ensure that powerful business groups cannot abuse the country’s legal system to silence critics.”

Nair told CPJ that the arrest warrant did not specify how he had allegedly defamed the company, and said he had not seen a copy of Adani Group’s actual complaint. If charged and convicted of criminal defamation, he could face up to two years in prison and a fine under Indian law.

In 2019 and 2020, Nair published investigative reports about the company in Newsclick, in which he alleged that the company had used its political influence to secure the rights to develop and operate airports throughout India. Last July, he authored a two-part report about offshore investors in the company for AdaniWatch, a nonprofit news group that documents the conglomerate’s activities.

Adani Group, which is controlled by Gautam Adani, the fourth richest man in the world, has previously filed defamation suits against journalists including Bodhisatva Ganguli, Pavan Burugula, and Nehal Chaliawala of the Economic Times, Latha Venkatesh and Nimesh Shah of CNBC TV18, freelance journalist Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, news website Newsclick, and the news magazine Economic and Policy Weekly.

CPJ emailed the Gandhinagar district court and Roy Paul, Adani Group’s associate vice president for corporate communication, for comment, but did not receive any replies.

Reporter at News 24 Televsion Lalan Kumar Mandal was attacked for reporting news in Mahottari on July 25. Mahottari lies in Madhesh Province of Nepal.

Talking to Freedom Forum, reporter Mandal shared that he had been following activities of Sanjay Rauniyar, an alleged loan-shark. On the day of incident, he reached the site of incident as per the information from victims of loan sharking.

Suddenly a clash broke at the site while he was taking video of victims' protest and then, body guards of Rauniyar attacked the reporter and locals.

"Though I said that I was a reporter they did not stop. I have been injured on hands and legs", he said.

"Thereafter, I filed a complaint at the local police station. Nepal police has arrested Rauniyar and is searching for other attackers", he informed.

Freedom Forum condemns the incident as it is serious violation of press freedom. Attacking the reporter while reporting is sheer disresect of journalists' right to free press.

FF strongly urges the security authority to investigate the case fairly and ensure safety of the journalists to avoid any untoward incident in future.

This week Freedom Forum recorded three incidents where Nepal police manhandled and arrested about a dozen of people for protesting against government actions.

On July 25, the police arrested three youth Arjun Poudel, Som Sharma, and Biplab Khadka for shouting slogans against Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba at a program held in Kathmandu. They were released on July 26.

Again on July 28, the cadres of Nepal Communist Party, under Biplav's leadership were arrested for waving black flags against a visiting foreign official.

Similarly, in a separate incident, Khadka and Sharma were rearrested from Maitighar Mandala while staging demonstrations against the Citizenship Amendment Bill. The Bill has been passed by the House of Representatives amid public grievances and was scheduled to be passed by the National Assembly on the same day.

Freedom Forum vehemently condemns police action. FF strongly urges Nepal government to respect and hear the opinion and expression of every citizen which is prerequisite to functional democracy.

Moreover, right to peaceful assembly and protest is an fundamental human right in democracy. The Constitution of Nepal guarantees every individual the right to expression and peaceful assembly. The Local Administration Act, 2028 B.S. and Muluki Criminal Code, 2074 B.S. prohibits use of force over peaceful assembly unless and until it turns violent or there is a perceived threat to peace and security. The arrest and manhandle of protestors sitting with pamphlets, within the protests permitted vicinity is a sheer violation of law. These forms of intimidation puts chilling effect on the citizens to express their right to free expression, peaceful assembly and protest.

"Black flag protest is a civilized protest. Muzzling this peaceful form of protest to stifle dissent is against the democratic values. The right to peaceful assembly and expression is a bulwark of democracy. Government should respect this liberty vested on citizens. Dissent is a beauty of democracy. State should hear and acknowledge the dissent, rather than employing police force to suppress it." argued Taranath Dahal, Executive Chief at Freedom Forum.

The case of Chinese human rights lawyer Chang Weiping, who was charged with “inciting subversion of state power” for attending a gathering, was heard in secret on Tuesday. His wife, Dr. Chen Zijuan, and his child were stopped by at least 18 police officers on their way to the court in Feng County, Baoji City, Shaanxi Province, on Monday evening. A number of human rights activists were taken away by police when they attempted to travel to Feng County to join in solidarity with Chang Weiping’s case.

On July 25, Dr. Chen Zijuan, the wife of lawyer Chang Weiping, posted a video on her Twitter account saying that she was going to attend Chang Weiping’s court hearing in Feng County. She was, however, stopped by police officers on the Feng County highway. As seen in the video, several police officers stopped Chen’s car, and one police officer spoke with Chen; the officer refused to show his officer identification card and tried to prevent her from recording the video. 18 public security authorities and police officers, not including those in the car, forcibly stopped Chen and her child at a highway intersection on the grounds of COVID prevention measures. Her car was surrounded by public security and police vehicles, as well as “unknown” vehicles, and people in white hazmat suits knocked on her car window.

She was advised by the police to return, claiming that she was from a medium-risk area of the outbreak, but she was from a low-risk area in Shenzhen, Guangdong. She had already gathered relevant information and undergone COVID testing before her trip and only needed to test two more times within three days upon her arrival. However, the police had set up strict monitoring of her trip in advance and prevented her from entering Feng County under the guise of COVID prevention measures. Feng County is a small and remote, mountainous town where Chang Weiping was detained.

The police in Feng County conducted a selective inspection of Chen Zijuan’s car. Chen said, “In fact, it was to inspect me, because after inspecting me, other vehicles were not checked.” The police blocked her car and refused to let her go to Feng County, and the mother and son were stuck in the car overnight.

“I’m still blocked at the Feng County highway exit; I just want to sit in on my husband’s trial and figure out why he’s accused of subverting state power. Is that a problem? I never thought I would not even be able to enter Feng County!” Chen Zijuan said.

Lin Qilei, a human rights lawyer whose lawyer’s license was revoked, commented, “In order to prevent family members from attending the trial of the case, this police officer blatantly violated the legal rights and interests of citizens; in violation of laws and regulations!”

On the same day, police took away Tian Qiuli from Baoji City by her hair at a hotel in Feng County because she stood in solidarity with Chang. He Jiawei, a pro-democracy activist from Zhuzhou, Hunan Province, planned to go to the court to show solidarity with Chang Weiping but was threatened and kept at home by state security police. Deng Fuquan, a human rights activist in Sichuan, was taken away by the police from the place where he has his household registration. Lawyer Li Dawei traveled to Feng County, Shaanxi Province, to show his support for Chang Weiping’s trial, but was found and taken away overnight by state security officers from his hometown of Tianshui, Gansu Province.

In early December 2019, Chang Weiping participated in a gathering in Xiamen with Dr. Xu Zhiyong, one of the founders of the Chinese civil society movement, lawyer Ding Jiaxi, and others, where they discussed current affairs and the future of China and shared their experiences in promoting civil society.

On December 26 of the same year, the authorities arrested those involved in the gathering. More than 20 dissidents and lawyers were forcibly disappeared, summoned, or detained, and some were even charged on suspicion of “inciting subversion of state power” (in some cases, subversion of state power) and “picking quarrels and provoking trouble.” Most of them were released on bail, but Dr. Xu Zhiyong and lawyer Ding Jiaxi were formally arrested. Authorities placed Chang Weiping in Residential Surveillance at a Designated Location (RSDL) and tortured him. They officially arrested him in April 2021.

Mary Lawlor, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, noted on July 9: “Since the so-called 709 crackdown began on 9 July 2015, the profession of human rights lawyer has been effectively criminalized in China.”

Because authorities coerced Chang Weiping’s defense attorney, Zhao, to sign a confidentiality agreement, he was also obstructed in the process of handling the case. He is not at liberty to disclose information about the case, and details of the trial remain unknown. The only thing that is clear is that Chang Weiping’s lawyer denied the prosecution’s accusations, believing himself to be not guilty.

According to Chinese practice on case verdicts, once a suspect has been formally arrested and prosecuted by the procuratorate, the suspect is rarely acquitted by the court; even more so in cases of political nature against pro-democracy activists because the Chinese judiciary does not have any independence. If the court acquits a suspect, doesn’t that mean that the Public Security Bureau and the Procuratorate have arrested the wrong person? The arrogance of power under the CCP system and the bureaucratic system that unites the three departments of the Public Security Bureau, the Procuratorate, and the Law will determine the fate of “political prisoners.” Since the case was wrongfully handled, the case will continue in the wrong direction.

At this time, it is unknown how Feng County’s court will sentence lawyer Chang Weiping.

While the trial of Chang Weiping was in progress, Dr. Chen Zijuan said, “The trial has begun, and my child and I are still blocked at the highway exit.”

Once authorities in Feng County determined that Dr. Chen missed her husband’s trial, the police released her. On the morning of the 26th, Chen gave a moving speech addressed to her husband at a highway intersection in Feng County with a bouquet of flowers in her hand:

“Today is your Good Friday; but at the same time, I think it is also your day of glory. I’m sorry that I could not be there with you in person, despite traveling more than 2,000 kilometers to witness the moment with you. But they wouldn’t allow it and blocked me on the highway for more than 10 hours ...... No matter how they sentence you, it is an unjust trial. Today’s trial wasn’t yours; instead, it was their crime scene. The kids and I will always support you and we will wait for the day you return.”

There were several police cars parked behind her as she delivered her speech. Chen’s speech in the video was widely retweeted on Twitter, with more than 4,000 people liking it in support of her, and it was even transferred to social media inside the Chinese firewall, where it received a lot of solidarity from netizens.

Following the French Embassy, the Swiss Embassy in Beijing issued a statement: “Closely following Human Rights Lawyer # ChangWeiping’s closed-door trial today.”

The German Ambassador in Beijing expressed on Twitter: “A sad day for #humanrights in #China. Today, lawyer #ChangWeiping, last year’s winner of the German-French Human Rights Prize, faces a closed-door trial for ‘subverting state power’……We stand by his wife, family, friends and colleagues in calling on Chinese authorities to set him free.”

In a tweet, the British Embassy in Beijing commented, “#ChangWeiping, arrested in 2020 after raising issues of torture and #humanrights in China (including his own mistreatment) is today scheduled for trial behind closed doors. The UK calls for the release of all those currently detained for promoting fundamental rights and freedoms.”

But the U.S. side has remained unusually quiet.

Lawyer Chang Weiping has long shown concern and put his efforts into rights issues regarding the Chinese house church and those who faced discrimination over HIV and sexual orientation. In 2019, Chang Weiping participated in the “Xiamen Gathering” convened by human rights activists. His attendance led to him being placed under residential surveillance at a designated location (RSDL) for 12 days by the public security bureau in Baoji City, Shaanxi Province in January 2020. During his enforced disappearance he was tortured. The following year, Chang Weiping self-recorded a video clip, revealing that during the period he lost his freedom, he was subjected to torture; he was locked onto a “tiger chair” 24 hours a day for 10 days.

The tiger chair is a kind of torture that may lead to death: The public authorities tie the suspect to a long bench. The upper body and hands are tied behind the back. The legs are stretched out on the surface of the bench, attached to the wooden frame. Prisoners are tied right above the knees with ropes, and bricks are placed in the seam between the calves and the bench or under the heels. Their feet are lifted upward, causing great pain for the tortured prisoner by pulling the ligaments of the legs’ joints, which can easily lead to muscle tears or bruising.

On October 22, 2020, Chang was placed under residential surveillance on suspicion of “inciting subversion;” On April 7, 2021, he was arrested on suspicion of subversion of state power, and during a meeting with his lawyer, he revealed that he had been severely tortured while under residential surveillance. His case has been postponed several times without any reason. He is currently detained at Feng County Detention Center in Baoji City, Shaanxi Province.

Myanmar’s junta has executed four prisoners including a former politician and a veteran activist, drawing shock and revulsion at the country’s first use of capital punishment in decades.

Junta-controlled media reported on Monday that four men, including Phyo Zeya Thaw, a rapper and former lawmaker from Aung San Suu Kyi’s party, and the prominent democracy activist Kyaw Min Yu, known as Jimmy, had been executed. They were accused of conspiring to commit terror acts and were sentenced to death in January in closed trials.

The UN special rapporteur Thomas Andrews said he was “outraged and devastated” by the executions. “The widespread and systematic murders of protesters, indiscriminate attacks against entire villages, and now the execution of opposition leaders, demands an immediate and firm response by member states of the United Nations,” he said.

France and Japan also condemned the executions, while the US national security council described the killings as “heinous”.

Aung Myo Min, the human rights minister in Myanmar’s national unity government (NUG), which was formed in exile by elected politicians, ethnic minority representatives and activists, said he was extremely saddened. “What else do we need to prove how cruel the murderous Myanmar’s military is?” he said.

Following reports of the executions, demonstrators in Yangon held up a banner which read “we will never be frightened”.

Another banner was hung on a bridge in Yangon bearing a warning that the junta should “be ready to pay for the blood debt”. Text underneath read: “RIP Zeyar Thaw, Jimmy, Hla Myo Aung and Aung Thura.”

Local media reported that the families of the men had travelled to Insein prison in Yangon demanding to see their loved ones’ bodies.

A source close to the family of Kyaw Min Yu said they had received confirmation from the deputy prison chief of Insein prison that the death penalty had been carried out. No information was provided about when the execution took place. Prison officials refused to hand the body over to relatives, they said, despite prison regulations stating it must do so unless there is a special reason.

Myanmar’s military junta seized power in a coup in February 2021, ousting the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, and has since unleashed a campaign of brutal violence to suppress opposition.

A total of 14,847 people have been arrested since the coup, while 11,759 remain in detention, according to the advocacy group Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) Burma, which monitors arrests and killings.

According to AAPP Burma, 76 prisoners have been sentenced to death since the coup, including two children. A further 41 people have been sentenced to death in absentia. Before the executions on Monday, Myanmar had not carried out capital punishment in more than 30 years, according to the UN.

Many in Myanmar turned their social media profile pictures black and red in a show of mourning. Others posted lines from the men’s lyrics and speeches including the line “nothing’s gonna happen if we are all united” from one of Phyo Zeya Thaw’s rap songs.

Phyo Zeya Thaw, 41, was arrested in November when about 100 police and soldiers raided a housing complex in Yangon. Before entering politics he was an activist and rapper. In 2000 he released the country’s first rap album, having founded the hip-hop band Acid. His lyrics, and their thinly veiled criticisms of the previous military regime, captured the anger and frustrations of a generation of young listeners.

Phyo Zeya Thaw was an activist with the movement Generation Wave, which used graffiti, pamphlets and coded protest material to campaign against the previous regime. Like many of the group’s members, he was arrested and imprisoned. He went on to become a lower house MP in April 2012, the same year Aung San Suu Kyi was elected to parliament.

Kyaw Min Yu, 53, a veteran activist, was arrested in an overnight raid in October. He was a prominent leader of the 88 Generation Students Group, which led pro-democracy uprisings against the military, and was imprisoned in 1988 for his role in the protests. He was released in 2005 but jailed again from 2007 until 2012.

Kyaw Min Yu was also a writer, and while in prison translated works including Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons, and wrote the novel, The Moon in Inle Lake. His 2005 self-help book Making Friends was a bestseller, according to PEN International.

The two other executed men – Hla Myo Aung and Aung Thura Zaw – were accused of killing a woman they suspected was a military informer in Yangon, according to Agence France-Presse.

The men had tried to appeal but their sentence was upheld in June. They were reportedly denied access to legal counsel during their appeal, in violation of international human rights law.

The junta-controlled newspaper Global New Light of Myanmar said on Monday the men had given “directives, made arrangements, and committed conspiracies for brutal and inhuman terror acts”.

The junta gave no details on how the men were executed.

Yee Mon, the NUG’s defence minister, wrote on Facebook: “This revolution isn’t over until we bring justice against [junta chief] Min Aung Hlaing. He won’t have an inch of earth to run for, [we] will chase him down until the end of the world.”

In the early hours of July 22, 2022, Sri Lankan security forces forcibly dispersed people at a peaceful protest site and assaulted protesters in central Colombo, injuring more than 50 people and arresting at least 9 others, Human Rights Watch said today.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who took office on July 21, should immediately order the security forces to cease all unlawful use of force against protesters, release everyone arbitrarily detained, and investigate and appropriately prosecute those responsible for abuses. Foreign governments and multilateral agencies that have sought to address Sri Lanka’s economic crisis should emphasize to the new government that respect for human rights is critical for economic recovery.

“Just one day after taking office, President Wickremesinghe oversaw a brutal assault by security forces on peaceful protesters in the heart of Colombo,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “This action sends a dangerous message to the Sri Lankan people that the new government intends to act through brute force rather than the rule of law.”

Several hundred police, army, navy, and air force personnel carried out the July 22 raid. Hours earlier, protest organizers had announced that they would leave the protest site the following day. Using batons, the security forces attacked demonstrators who had remained at the protest site, along with several journalists and two lawyers who were there. Protesters told Human Rights Watch that air force personnel detained a small group of people for several hours and severely beat them before they were released.

A person who was there at around 1 a.m., when the security forces attacked the protest site, said: “Some people were badly injured. Since we were surrounded by security forces, we couldn’t get the ambulance inside [the site].” He said the first ambulance arrived at about 7 a.m. “There was one person who got beaten very badly, he couldn’t even stand. He got to hospital after five hours.” He said that the security forces appeared to be targeting perceived leaders of the protest movement: “They pointed out some specific people and they took them in.” Others were beaten but not arrested.

Nine people who were arrested were produced in court on July 22 and released on bail. A Bar Association of Sri Lanka statement said that they included “at least one lawyer and several journalists. . . The use of the Armed Forces to supress civilian protesters on the very first day in office of the new President is despicable and will have serious consequences on our country’s social, economic, and political stability.”

Since the beginning of 2022, Sri Lanka has experienced an escalating economic crisis and the government has defaulted on its foreign loans. The United Nations warned that 5.7 million people “require immediate humanitarian assistance.” With many Sri Lankans experiencing extreme shortages of essentials including food and fuel, peaceful protests began in March. The protests led then-Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa to resign on May 9, and his brother, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, to flee the country on July 13 and resign the following day.

Wickremasinghe became acting president, and parliament elected him as the new president on July 20 with the support of the Rajapaksas’ political party, the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna. He had previously described some protesters as “fascists” and declared a state of emergency on July 18.

On July 21, Wickremesinghe issued an order to “call out with effect from July 22, 2022 all the members of the Armed Forces . . . for the maintenance of public order.” Under emergency powers the president can override, amend, or suspend a provision of any law, except the constitution. Emergency powers can be used to detain people while bypassing the ordinary process of the courts and have repeatedly been used in the past to enable human rights violations.

While international law permits the suspension of certain rights during an emergency, protections against torture, excessive use of force, and other fundamental rights must never be violated. The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka said the state of emergency was “inappropriate” and called for it to be withdrawn. It called the military attack on peaceful protesters “brutal and despicable.” Diplomats from countries including the United States, United Kingdom, Switzerland and Canada, as well as the UN and European Union, also condemned the assault on the protest site.

Following the raid, fresh protests were staged in Colombo against the security force crackdown. Law enforcement for public assemblies should normally be carried out by civilian police, not military personnel, as military personnel typically have little training in crowd control. All security forces should abide by the UN Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials and the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials, Human Rights Watch said.

“Urgently needed measures to address the economic needs of Sri Lankans demand a government that respects fundamental rights,” Ganguly said. “Sri Lanka’s international partners should send the message loud and clear that they can’t support an administration that tramples on the rights of its people.”

On the early morning of July 22, Sri Lankan security forces assaulted at least four members of the press, including three journalists with the privately owned digital news platform Xposure News, covering a military raid on a protest site and subsequent demonstration in Colombo, the capital, according to those journalists, who spoke with CPJ by phone.

Separately, police arrived at the Xposure News office on Wednesday, July 27, seeking three journalists who had covered protests for the outlet, those journalists said.

Protests have broken out throughout Sri Lanka amid an ongoing political and economic crisis; President Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled the country on July 13 and resigned the next day, and former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was sworn in as the new president on July 21.

“The repeated attacks on journalists covering political unrest in Sri Lanka must come to an immediate end. The government must order security forces to cease detaining and harassing journalists covering the country’s political and economic crisis,” said Carlos Martinez de la Serna, CPJ’s program director, in Madrid. “Authorities must thoroughly investigate these attacks, hold the perpetrators to account, and cease harassing the staff of Xposure News.”

At about 1:20 a.m. on July 22, Sri Lankan Army officers attacked Jareen Samuel, a camera operator and video editor with BBC News, while he was covering security forces’ raid on a protest camp in the Galle Face area of Colombo, according to multiple reports by the BBC and Samuel, who spoke to CPJ by phone.

Samuel told CPJ that he and members of his reporting team showed their press IDs and foreign accreditation cards to the officers, who then repeatedly slapped Samuel, pushed him to the ground, and kicked him several times in the abdomen. He said an officer also confiscated his phone, deleted videos from it, and then returned it.

Samuel was treated at a local hospital for an injury to his abdomen, he told CPJ.

Also early that morning, officers with the Sri Lankan Air Force attacked three journalists with Xposure News while they covered a protest in the Kollupitiya area of Colombo, according to a video of the incident published by Xposure News and the three journalists, who spoke to CPJ by phone.

Shortly before 3 a.m., officers first attacked Chaturanga Pradeep Kumara, a videographer, video editor, and researcher with the outlet, according to the journalist and that video. Kumara said an officer beat him on the legs with a baton, knocking him to the ground; when he could not get up, officers dragged him to a dark area nearby as he repeatedly identified himself as a journalist.

At that location, air force and army officers confiscated his phone and his personal and press ID cards, Kumara said. Officers deleted several videos from Kumara’s phone and ordered him to contort his body into positions used as punishment among members of the Sri Lankan Army; when the journalist was unable to put himself in those positions, he said the officers beat him with batons and then lined him up with other detainees and repeatedly slapped them across their ears.

After about three hours, officers returned Kumara’s phone and identification cards and released him, the journalist told CPJ, saying he received painkillers for a muscle injury to his leg at a local hospital.

Shortly after officers detained Kumara, Xposure News digital head Rasika Gunawardana and Shabeer Mohammed, a freelance journalist reporting for the outlet, were filming security forces allegedly attacking civilians when a group of air force officers surrounded them, ordered them to stop filming, and threw Mohammed’s phone to the ground, according that video of the incident and the two journalists. Gunawardena said that an officer then struck him on the head from behind with a baton, and Mohammed said officers hit him from behind on his neck.

Gunawardena and Mohammed received treatment at a local hospital for their injuries and were prescribed painkillers, they said.

The three Xposure News journalists told CPJ that they were unable to identify the officers who attacked them because they were not wearing badges and their faces were covered.

On July 27, two police officers visited Xposure News’ office in Colombo, and showed the building’s security guard photos of Kumara, Gunawardana, and Mohammed, according to the three journalists and a tweet by Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka, a local press freedom group. The officers asked whether the journalists worked there, and also asked the security guard to provide access to CCTV footage of the building, the three journalists told CPJ, adding that the guard refused their requests.

Sri Lanka police spokesperson Nihal Thalduwa did not respond to CPJ’s request for comment sent via messaging app. CPJ emailed Nalin Herat, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Defense, which oversees the army and air force, but did not receive any reply.

A Koh Kong resident in dispute with a sugar plantation was sentenced to a year in prison on Wednesday for malicious denunciation, but remains free for now with no arrest warrant issued by the court.

The Koh Kong Provincial Court issued the verdict against Deth Huor, a community representative in Sre Ambel district’s Chi Khor Loeu commune, for malicious denunciation and defamation charges that have arisen out of a land dispute with oknha Heng Huy.

Huy has filed multiple court complaints against protesters who say they are losing land to Huy’s sugar plantation. The dispute dates back more than a decade, and has involved hundreds of local families.

Huor, who was also fined 2 million riel (about $500), told VOD on Wednesday that she believed the verdict was unfair and would appeal the court’s decision.

“I feel really hurt that the court believed Mr. Heng Huy while hundreds of families lost their land because of Heng Huy’s encroachment,” Huor said. “When we lose land or lose something unfairly, why can’t we protest, and talk about that?”

According to Huor, the defamation part of the case related to a photo of Huy she posted on Facebook alongside criticism of him encroaching on people’s land.

Protesters from around 200 families in Chi Khor Loeu and Chi Khor Krom have also visited Phnom Penh to press their case, and in 2019 the Land Ministry rejected their appeal and called for legal action against their representatives for inciting the group to protest.

The charge of malicious denunciation refers to sending an accusation known to be false to authorities to take action. It is punishable by one month to one year in jail.

Her lawyer, Sam Chamroeun, said no arrest warrant had been issued for Huor despite the prison sentence.

“For this case, the court did not issue the arrest warrant. So in this case, [we] will file an appeal and we are on bail as normal … just waiting for the final verdict of the Appeal Court and Supreme Court,” Chamroeun said. “According to the procedure, for a sentence from one year up, the court has the right to issue an arrest warrant but the court also might not issue the arrest warrant.”

Huy, the tycoon, could not be reached on Wednesday, but last year told VOD that his company had legal rights to the disputed area and denied it was encroaching on people’s land.

7 activists from the activist group Thalufah were denied bail on Tuesday (19 July), after the public prosecutor decided to indict them on charges relating to a protest at the Democrat Party headquarters on 30 July 2021.

During the 30 July 2021 protest, activists went to the Democrat Party headquarters to demand that it leave the government coalition. They splashed paint in front of the headquarters, attached stickers and pieces of paper to the gates, and burned a straw effigy of Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha.

10 activists were charged with joining an assembly of more than ten persons and causing a breach of public peace, not dispersing when ordered to do so by an official, damaging property, trespassing by an act of violence, using a sound amplifier without permission, and violating regulations under the Emergency Decree by staging a public assembly risking the spread of Covid-19. The complaint against them was filed by Democrat Party spokesperson Ramet Rattanachaweng.

On Tuesday (19 July), the public prosecutor decided to indict 9 of the 10 activists. Since Nawapol Tonngam, one of the activists charged, did not attend the hearing because he tested positive for Covid-19, the public prosecutor has yet to indict him.

Of the 9 activists indicted, 7 were later denied bail by the Criminal Court on the ground that they are likely to cause further damage since they have previously been prosecuted in the Criminal Court: Saksit Phuakpongsri, Katanyu Muenkhamruang, Chitrin Phalakantrong, Thawee Thiangwiset, Chatchai Phrailin, Thotsama Somchit, and Kridsana Martviset.

Saksit, Jittrin, Chatchai, and Kridsana are now detained at the Bangkok Remand Prison, while Katanyu and Thotsama are detained at the Women Correctional Institution.

Meanwhile, Songphon Sonthirak and Jetsadaphon Phophet were granted bail using a security of 35,000 baht each, covered by the Will of the People Fund, a bail fund for those prosecuted for participating in the pro-democracy movement. The Court set the conditions that they must not repeat their offences and must appoint a supervisor to whom they must report every 15 days.

Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) reported that the judge issuing the order denying bail for the 7 activists did not sign the order. 31 political prisoners now detained

The denial of bail for the 7 Thalufah activists and for a man named Boonma, who is being detained pending appeal after he was convicted for violating the Computer Crimes Act after he was accused of running an anti-monarchy Facebook page, brought the number of political prisoners currently detained in Thai prisons to 31.

Of this number, 5 people are detained on royal defamation charges:

Private Methin (pseudonym), 22, a soldier detained at the 11th Military Circle Prison since 19 March 2022 after he was accused of mentioning King Vajiralongkorn while arguing with another person who hit his motorcycle with their car. TLHR reported that Methin was held at the 11th Military Circle for 30 days while facing disciplinary action, before being arrested by officers from Bangbuatong Police Station and detained at the military prison.
Nutthanit, 20, an activist from the monarchy reform activist group Thaluwang. She has been detained pending trial on charges of royal defamation, sedition, and refusing to comply with an officer’s order filed against her for conducting a public poll on royal motorcades in February 202 She has been denied bail 7 times and has been on a hunger strike for 50 days to demand the right to bail.
Netiporn, 26, another activist from the monarchy reform activist group Thaluwang. She is detained on the same charges as Nutthanit, has been repeatedly denied bail, and is also on a hunger strike to demand the right to bail.
Sombat Thongyoi, a former Red Shirt protest guard sentenced to 6 years in prison on charges of royal defamation and violation of the Computer Crimes Act over 3 Facebook posts he made in 2020. Sombat has been detained pending appeal at the Bangkok Remand Prison since 28 April 2022.
Pornchai Yuanyee, a Thalufah activist, who was accused of burning a royal ceremonial arch in front of Ratchawinit School during a protest on 19 September 2019. He has been detrained pending trial at the Bangkok Remand Prison since 7 July 2022.

TLHR reported that 3 detainees are now on a hunger strike to demand the right to bail. Other than Nutthanit and Netiporn, Theerawit, a protester detained during investigation on charges relating to a protest at Din Daeng Intersection on 11 June 2022, has also been on a hunger strike since 18 June. Meanwhile, Phalaphon, another protester detained during investigation on charges relating to the 11 June 2022 protest, protested against his detention by attempting to overdose on paracetamol and is now being treated for a kidney inflammation at the Medical Correctional Institution.

Two other protesters detained on the same charges as Theerawit and Phalaphon, Baibun and Phutiphong, along with Nueng, a protester detained on charges relating to a protest at Din Daeng on 14 June 2022, have cut themselves to protest their detention. They had been admitted to the Medical Correctional Institution after testing positive for Covid-19, and TLHR said they are being treated as psychiatric patients.

A citizen journalist has been charged with contempt of court for live streaming from the South Bangkok Criminal Court after lawyers filed the 7th bail request for monarchy reform activists Nutthanit and Netiporn.

Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) reported that on Monday (18 July), the Director of the South Bangkok Criminal Court filed a contempt of court charge against Paradorn Ketphuak, 55, a citizen journalist who runs the Facebook page “Uncle Dorn Ketphuak” and often live streams from protests and from various Bangkok courts when activists are ordered to court. The charge is based on the live streaming from the gates of the South Bangkok Criminal Court when monarchy reform activists Nutthanit and Netiporn were taken to court for a witness examination hearing and while the activists’ lawyers were waiting for the results of another bail request.

Reporters and members of the public were reported to have gathered at the court at the witness examination hearing of Nutthanit and Netiporn, who are held in pre-trial detention on royal defamation charges for conducting a public poll on royal motorcades in February 2022. The two activists have been on a hunger strike for the past 48 days to demand the right to bail. They were taken from the court to nearby Lerdsin Hospital on medical advice after they collapsed during the hearing due to severe stomach pains and fatigue, leading to their lawyers’ decision to filed another urgent bail request so that they can receive medical attention. Their bail request was subsequently denied.

TLHR said that Paradorn, who runs a Facebook page with over 6000 followers and a YouTube channel with over 9000 followers, was live streaming in front of the court for around 15 minutes in the morning. He halted the live stream to observe the hearing. He started live streaming again in the afternoon for another 18 minutes while waiting for the result of the two activists’ bail request.

At around 16.00, the Director of the South Bangkok Criminal Court informed Paradorn that a contempt of court charge had been filed against him. A judge later summoned him and a lawyer into a courtroom for a preliminary hearing.

The Director told the judge that he was told by a security guard that Paradorn was live streaming on the steps of the court building, which is a violation of the court’s security regulations. Paradorn denied all accusations and said that he was not aware that live streaming contravened court regulations. He has live streamed from this court and other courts many times and did not receive any warnings from police officers or security guards. He also said that there was no sign stating court regulations on live streaming in the area.

Paradorn was released without bail. He will have to attend another hearing on 17 October 2022.

The Jharkhand Police on Sunday arrested independent journalist Rupesh Kumar Singh in connection with a 2021 case, The Indian Express reported. The police have alleged that Singh used to arrange funds for Maoists.

Singh was among the 40 Indian journalists whose phone numbers appeared in a leaked database, which reflects potential targets of cyber surveillance through the use of the Pegasus hacking software that an Israeli company claims to sell only to governments.

Three phone numbers related to him appeared in the leaked database a few months after he reported on the killing of an innocent Adivasi man by the Jharkhand Police in 2017, according to The Wire.

On Sunday, Jharkhand Police spokesperson Amol V Homkar confirmed that Singh was arrested from his home in the Ramgarh district.

“He [Singh] was arrested for his links with Communist Party of India (Maoist) leaders in the case that was registered against Maoist veteran Prashant Bose,” Homkar said, according to The Indian Express. “There is no fresh FIR against him.”

Bose, his wife Sheela Marandi, and five others were arrested in November 2021. They were charged under Sections 420 (cheating), 467 (forgery), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating) and 471 (using forged document) of the Indian Penal Code along with Sections 10 and 13 of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and Section 17 of the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act.

While they all were wanted in connection with several cases, the police have not disclosed the specific case in which they were arrested, The Wire reported.

Meanwhile, Singh’s family members alleged that the police had searched their home for over nine hours before arresting the journalist.

“The police force knocked on our door at 5.25 in the morning and served us a search warrant,” Singh’s wife Ipsa Shatakshi told The Wire. “The two lady police searched our kitchen. They checked if there were suspicious things in the rice, flour etc.”

The family also claimed that the police seized a bed sheet, a nine-page notebook, a tax invoice for a motorcycle, two mobile phones, one hard disk, the retail invoice for a car and two laptops from their home.

“The police did not tell us on what allegation my husband has been arrested,” Shatakshi said. “They took away his [Singh’s] laptop and even my younger sister’s laptop.”

On Monday evening, Shatakshi told the United States-based non-profit organisation Committee to Protect Journalists that even after 24 hours of arrest, the police have not presented Singh before a magistrate to hear his bail application.

According to Article 22 of the Indian Constitution, anyone arrested or detained by the police is required to be produced before a magistrate within 24 hours of arrest.

The non-profit has also called upon Indian authorities to release Singh.

“Indian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release journalist Rupesh Kumar Singh, cease harassing him in retaliation for his work, and allow him to report freely and safely,” the Committee to Protect Journalists said in a statement.

Singh has been reporting on state violence against Adivasi communities for over seven years. His reports have appeared in Hindi magazines called Samyantar and Dastak, along with online news websites like Media Vigil, Gauri Lankesh News and Janchowk among others.

Three men attempted to intimidate a journalist at his house in Tamiang Layang, Central Kalimantan, on July 17, allegedly for his coverage of sexual harassment by a local official. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate, the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Indonesia, to condemn the intimidation of the journalist and demand the authorities conduct an investigation.

On July 17, three men visited the residence of Agustinus Bole Malo, a journalist for local online media Borneonews.com. According to Agustinus’ wife, they looked through the windows and attempted to find the journalist, before leaving upon determining he was not at home.

Agustinus had recently published several articles regarding the sexual harassment of a female university student allegedly by the head of the Social Department for Empowering Villagers in East Barito, when the student applied for financial assistance under the Indonesia Smart Card (KIP) program.

Agustinus has filed a report on the intimidation of his family to the sub-district police of East Barito.

Many local journalists in Indonesia have faced intimidation and harassment while in the field or following their coverage, from a range of perpetrators including the public order agency (Satpol PP), police, local agency officers and other individuals.

Since the beginning of June, the IFJ has documented at least five incidents of harassment against journalists in Indonesia. On June 29, local journalists Adhe Junaedi Sholat, associated with Radar Sulbar, and Abdul Rahman, a reporter for Tribunsulbar.com, were harassed while covering the coordination meeting of the taskforce agrarian reform in Mamuju, West Sulawesi.

Kazakh authorities must fully and transparently investigate the recent attack on journalist Olesya Vertinskaya and ensure her safety, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday.

On the morning of Tuesday, July 19, an unidentified man attacked Vertinskaya, a correspondent for the independent news website and advocacy group Dorozhniy Kontrol, outside her home in the western city of Atyrau, according to the journalist, who spoke to CPJ in a phone interview and shared security footage of the attack, and a report by independent local free speech organization Adil Soz.

The man approached Vertinskaya and asked for help with a problem that he said “only [she] could solve,” and then punched her in the face, kicked her in the face as she fell to the ground, and then fled when a passerby approached, Vertinskaya told CPJ, saying her nose was broken in the attack.

Three days before she was beaten, Vertinskaya received a threatening text message from an unknown phone number that referenced her recent reporting on a local company selling fish in the area and told her to “be careful,” she said; immediately after the attack, the same number texted her again and said the company’s owner “will not leave it at that.”

Police have detained a suspect in the attack, according to the journalist and news reports, which said the suspect, who was not identified, was under investigation for assault and could face up to three years in prison.

“This vicious attack and ongoing threats against journalist Olesya Vertinskaya are entirely unacceptable and demand a firm response from Kazakh authorities,” said Gulnoza Said, CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia program coordinator, in New York. “Authorities must send a clear message that such brutality against the press will not be tolerated by swiftly holding all the perpetrators to account, including anyone who may have ordered the attack.”

Dorozhniy Kontrol (“Road Control”) covers the police and incidents involving drivers, according to its website, which says the organization also helps people file complaints against traffic officers. Vertinskaya told CPJ she mostly covers the work of traffic police, the courts, and other law enforcement bodies.

On July 15, Dorozhniy Kontrol’s branch in the Atyrau region published a video report showing police shutting down stalls set up without permission by a company selling fish, and said Dorozhniy Kontrol had contacted the police about the stalls. The following day, the account published another report alleging the company had been selling protected species of fish.

In the threatening messages she received on July 16, the sender told Vertinskaya that the fish company’s owner was friends with the head of the local National Security Committee office, the journalist told CPJ.

Following the attack, Vertinskaya was taken by ambulance to a local hospital, where she was treated for her broken nose and released, she said.

Neighbors later told Vertinskaya that the man had been waiting for her for around half an hour before she left her home, she said.

Vertinskaya told CPJ she believed the attack was most likely retaliation for that coverage of the fish sales company, but noted that she had also recently covered other sensitive topics, including allegations of mistreatment by the National Security Committee’s border guard department. She said she did not have any personal conflicts that could have led to the attack.

On Friday, Vertinskaya told CPJ that the unnamed suspect in police custody told officers he attacked her in retaliation for her reporting on a local amusement park. Vertinskaya told CPJ that she did not believe that was the real reason for the attack, however, as authorities had sided with the park after the outlet’s reporting.

Police previously detained and threatened Vertinskaya twice during her coverage of nationwide protests in Kazakhstan in January, according to the journalist and news reports. During one of these detentions, police forced her to delete video footage, punched her in the head, kicked her, and told her she “should be shot and have her head cut off,” according to those sources.

CPJ emailed the Interior Ministry of Kazakhstan for comment, but did not receive any reply.

A Lumad teacher was arrested by the Philippine National Police (PNP) on Sunday, July 17, according to human rights group Karapatan-Caraga.

Gary S. Campos, a Lumad-Manobo, was on his way to a review center to prepare for the upcoming licensure examination for teachers when he was arrested in Tandag City, Surigao del Sur, the group said in an alert.

Campos was able to call his friends from a police station in Butuan and told them that he was arrested. The group said the police reportedly presented a warrant of arrest but the charges are yet to be disclosed as of this writing.

Save Our Schools Network denounced Campos saying that this is “another attempt by state agents to repress Lumad youth who have been proactive in giving back to their communities.”

“Even after his administration has ended, Duterte’s terror persists and has been passed down to the current, including, among other things, extensive trumped up charges, unlawful detentions, and other human rights violations,” the group said in a statement.

Campos, is a graduate of Tribal Filipino Program of Surigao del Sur (TRIFPSS) and Alternative Learning Center for Agricultural and Livelihood Development (ALCADEV). He also finished his education degree at St. Theresa’s College-Tandag through the help of the Indigenous Peoples Apostolate scholarship program of the Diocese of Tandag.

Karapatan-Caraga said Campos volunteered as a teacher in TRIFPSS after his graduation to serve back to the community.

He currently volunteers as a teacher at a local school in Tandag City under the Department of Education.

Campos is also a member of Malahutayong Pakigbisog Alang sa Sumusunod (MAPASU), a Lumad organization at the forefront in defending the Andap Valley Complex against foreign, large-scale coal mining.

“We call on all student and Indigenous peoples’ rights advocates to stand with Gary and seek accountability from the terror being unleashed by the Duterte-Marcos regime,” the group said.

Editor at https://narayanionline.com/ Krishna Acharya was attacked while reporting at electricity office in Chitwan on July 15. Chitwan lies in the Bagmati Province of Nepal.

Editor Acharya was reporting on the cocktail party at the Bharatpur Electricity Authority office during office hours. As per the tip-off that the authority had cutoff electric supply in the area reasoning maintenance but the staffs were partying at the office, Acharya reached the office and took photos and videos of the party. Meanwhile, the drunk staffs attacked Acharya and seized his mobile phones. His clothes were torn and he was injured. Acharya however, escaped any serious injury.

The drunk staffs obeying the order of their office chief also deleted photos and videos of the party taken by the editor.

On July 16, Nepal police arrested seven officials on the basis of complaint filed at District Police Office Chitwan against the seven officers and their office chief.

Freedom Forum vehemently condemns the attack upon journalist while reporting news. The public authority should be accountable towards service delivery and responsible for public safety. But such act of public officials against the notion of human rights and free press is deplorable.

Hence, FF strongly urges the concerned authority to apologize for their misconduct and contribute to fair reporting atmosphere in future.

A court in Kazakhstan's largest city has denied the appeals of two Kazakh bloggers known for their criticism of Moscow, including Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine, against their prison sentences.

The Almaty district court not only rejected the appeal filed by Marghulan Boranbai, but added two more months to his five-year prison term, and upheld the five-year prison term for Danat Namazbaev.

Lawyer Bauyrzhan Azanov told RFE/RL that the ruling will be appealed again.

Boranbai and Namazbaev were both sentenced to five years in prison on March 14 after a court found them guilty of inciting hatred between Kazakhs and Russians.

Boranbai, who is also known for his articles criticizing corruption among top officials in Kazakhstan, was also found guilty of calling for the illegal seizure of power.

The defendants pleaded not guilty.

The bloggers have criticized Russia's policies, including its annexation of Ukraine's Crimea and support for separatists in eastern Ukraine, as well as its ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

They have also been critical of Russia's policies toward its neighbors, including Kazakhstan and Ukraine, calling on the Kazakh authorities to avoid any moves to integrate with Russia.

The probe against Boranbai and Namazbaev was launched in 2019 over their posts in Facebook.

On 15 July 2022, the Bangladeshi Armed Police Battalion 16 conducted a raid at the house of Rohingya human rights defenders and journalists Saiful Arakani and Aziz Arakani in Nayapara Registered Camp. Unable to find them at the residence, the police physically assaulted and arrested the defenders’ father Sultan Ahmed and their brother-in-law Nur Bareq. While Sultan Ahmed was released by the police after four hours, Nur Bareq remains under detention for more than four days without being made to appear in court. He was also severely beaten and tortured in the custody of the police.

Saiful Arakani and Aziz Arakani are brothers and Rohingya journalists who report on the various human rights violations faced by Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh and elsewhere in Asia. Saiful Arakani works as a reporter and Aziz Arakani as a camera operator for Rohingya news website The Arakan Times. The human rights defenders report on issues such as human trafficking of Rohingya refugees, killings of Rohingya human rights defenders and leaders, sale of drugs, lack of food security schemes, fires in refugee camps and so on. For their reporting on the issues faced by Rohingyas, Saiful Arakani and Aziz Arakani have faced repeated threats, harassment and violence from the police in Bangladesh and local mobs. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has been following their case and issued statements in support of the human rights defenders.

On 15 July 2022, the Armed Police Battalion 16 raided the house of Saiful Arakani and Aziz Arakani in search of the human rights defenders and instead detained their father and brother-in-law as a form of reprisal. Nur Bareq, their brother-in-law remains under detention without being presented in court. He is currently being detained in Cox Bazar Prison. The police also attempted to extort money from Saiful Arakani and Aziz Arakani in order to release Nur Bareq. The police uncovered a sum of money at their house during the raid which they claim has been unlawfully obtained and have accused the human rights defenders of money laundering, even though they have written evidence to prove that the money has been donated by international organizations for their father’s cancer treatment.

This is not the first form of reprisal faced by Saiful Arakani and Aziz Arakani in retaliation for their journalistic activities. On 29 June 2022, Aziz Arakani was violently assaulted by human traffickers in the presence of Bangladesh police, for his reporting on the trafficking of 34 Rohingya refugees from their camps. The traffickers also threatened to kill him and Saiful Arakani. Aziz Arakani tried to lodge a complaint with the police but believes that the police have been bribed by the traffickers and no action was taken against them.

On 20 December 2021, the Armed Police Battalion summoned Saiful Arakani to the station in Nayapara Refugee Camp, in relation to one of his reports and severely tortured him and threatened him against reporting. He was also forced to call Aziz Arakani to the police station and when he warned him that the police were looking for him, the police beat Saiful even more. The following day, the police hunted Aziz Arakani down at his residence and threatened him against reporting for the Rohingya people. The police detained their father for over three hours and let him go after obtaining his signature on a blank sheet of paper. Both Saiful Arakani and Aziz Arakani went into hiding for several months after this incident.

On 16 October 2021, people from the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army, an armed insurgent group who are against the repatriation of Rohingya refugees and are believed to be behind the killing of Rohingya human rights defender Mohib Ullah, visited their residence looking for them and shot their guns in the air as a threat for reporting on the death of Mohib Ullah. When they informed the police of this incident, they refused to take any action saying that CPJ and Rohingyas will save them. On 29 September 2021, the journalists had also received threatening phone calls from members of the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army.

Front Line Defenders is deeply concerned about the repeated threats, harassment and police brutality faced by human rights defenders Saiful Arakani and Aziz Arakani and their family. We condemn the use of force as a reprisal against legitimate human rights work and peaceful activities carried out by human rights defenders. The safety of Saiful Arakani and Aziz Arakani must be ensured by the authorities in Bangladesh as they are refugees and do not have the rights related to nationality.

Front Line Defenders urges the relevant authorities in Bangladesh to:

Immediately and unconditionally cease all forms of harassment against human rights defenders Saiful and Aziz Arakani and their family;

Immediately and unconditionally release Nur Bareq, the brother-in-law of the human rights defenders and conduct an impartial investigation into his wrongful detention and allegations of torture with a view to bring the perpetrators to justice in accordance with international human rights law;

Initiate an immediate, impartial and thorough enquiry into the threats and harassment faced by the human rights defenders and ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice in accordance with international human rights law;

Initiate a thorough judicial review of the rights guaranteed to refugees in Bangladesh in genuine consultation with independent civil society organisations and human rights defenders, with a view to aligning the laws with Bangladesh’s obligations under international human rights law and standards;

Guarantee in all circumstances that all human rights defenders in Bangladesh are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities without fear of reprisals and free of all restrictions.

Police in the Kazakh capital, Nur-Sultan, have forcibly removed 15 people from the presidential compound after they spent four days and nights there calling for justice for loved ones killed during the violent dispersal of anti-government protests in January.

One of the protesters, Baqytzhan Shyngysbekov, told RFE/RL by phone on July 14 that police officers forced all the protesters into police cars and took them to a police station.

Nur-Sultan police officials refused to comment on the situation, saying they were unaware of the developments.

One day earlier, police prevented the protesters from entering the building after officials denied their request to meet with President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev personally to demand that all posthumous terrorism charges against their relatives be dropped and that thorough investigations into their deaths be launched.

The January unrest occurred after a peaceful demonstration against a fuel-price hike in the tightly controlled, oil-rich Central Asian nation's western region of Manghystau on January 2 led to widespread anti-government protests that were violently dispersed by law enforcement and the military.

Thousands of people were detained during and after the protests, which Toqaev said were caused by "20,000 terrorists" from abroad, a claim for which authorities have provided no evidence.

Human rights groups say the number of killed demonstrators was much higher than any of the various figures provided by officials. The groups have provided evidence that peaceful demonstrators and people who had nothing to do with the protests were among those killed.

The government has not published the names of those killed during or after the unrest -- which led to the removal of former President Nursultan Nazarbaev and his relatives from the political scene -- and has rejected calls by Kazakh and global human rights groups for an international probe into the deaths.

In late June, Deputy Prosecutor-General Aset Shyndaliev admitted that six people had been tortured to death after being arrested for taking part in the January protests. He said a number of security officers had been arrested in connection with the alleged torture.

The Prosecutor-General's Office said earlier that 25 people were officially considered victims of torture by hot irons during interrogations.

Shyndaliev also said 232 people were killed during the protests. Officials have said 19 law enforcement officers were killed in the clashes.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns the three-year jail sentence that a woman journalist held since January has just received from a court in Yangon for spreading “false news,” and calls on UN officials to do something to stop the current surge in prison sentences being passed on journalists in Myanmar.

Nyein Nyein Aye, a freelancer also known by the pseudonym of “Mabel,” was sentenced by a court inside Yangon’s notorious Insein prison on 14 July to three years in prison with hard labour on charges of “causing fear, spreading false news and agitating crimes against a government employee” under Section 505 (a) of the penal code.

“After the big wave of arrests of journalists following the February 2021 coup, we are now seeing a surge of sentences passed behind closed doors by military courts acting almost like a factory production line,” said Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific desk. “In view of these shocking violations of basic rights, we urge Tom Andrews, the UN special rapporteur on Myanmar, to focus on the persecution of journalists and to take action to end these alarming abuses.”

Based in Yangon, Myanmar’s biggest city, Nyein Nyein Aye was freelancing for various media outlets at the time of her arrest on 15 January, including Mizzima News, a news website that has been banned by the junta. Before the February 2021 coup, she worked for two newspapers, The Standard Time Daily and Kumudra Journal, a weekly.

According to RSF’s press freedom barometer, of the total of 67 media workers currently held in Myanmar’s prisons, she is the 24th journalist to receive a prison sentence. Just a week before her trial, Aung San Lin, a reporter for Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB), was sentenced to six years of prison and hard labour.

The Sri Lankan authorities must not impose a blanket order authorising use of force during the state of emergency that has been announced and refrain from use of the armed forces to police people’s protest said Amnesty International today following a new order empowering armed forces to maintain law and order in Colombo.

“The recent escalation of the authorities’ response to protests by calling in the armed forces, firing at protestors and excessive use of tear gas which resulted in the death of one person yesterday is deeply worrying,” said Yamini Mishra, Amnesty International’s South Asia Regional Director.

On the morning of 13 July 2022, thousands of protestors started making their way towards the Prime Minister’s office and the Parliament in Colombo. After an angry face-off, protesters breached the gates and took over the Prime Minister’s office. Amnesty International staff present at the protest location confirmed that law enforcement officers fired volleys of teargas against people, including children and journalists some of whom were seen escaping the plumes while coughing and sputtering. Dozens of protesters were injured, and one was reported dead. At Galle Face, helicopters flew low overhead, where a rolling peaceful protest site had been established three months ago in the prolonged agitation over the economic crisis in the country. At another protest near the Parliament later the same day, more than 80 people were reported to be injured and admitted to hospital.

At 3pm the Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe delivered a televised address in which he said he had ordered the military to “do whatever is necessary to restore order”. On 14 July 2022, a press release was issued by the army announcing a warning that they will use force to restore law and order in the country.

Any blanket order authorising use of force by armed forces is problematic even during times of emergency. The armed forces should not be involved in the policing of public assemblies, since they are trained to fight against enemies and not to protect and control civilians.

Amnesty calls upon law enforcement agencies to act with restraint to avoid further serious injury and loss of life. They may only use the minimum level of force necessary force to bring a situation under control where doing so is strictly necessary and proportionate. Even in instances where some parts of a protests turn violent, law enforcement must assess the situation on a case-by-case basis with use of force only where absolutely necessary and only against those engaged in violence. It must be strictly proportionate to the situation faced by law enforcement, which means authorities must not cause more harm than they seek to avert.

“At a time when the country is facing a dire economic crisis and protests are growing in scale, authorities must make comprehensive efforts to de-escalate the situation and focus resources on ensuring people can access essential goods and services, in line with international human rights law and standards,” said Yamini Mishra.

The Myanmar junta has detained at least 30 teachers working for or suspected of being affiliated with a private online school with ties to the civilian National Unity Government (NUG) following the recent arrest of its founder.

According to a Saturday announcement in military-controlled media, on July 13 junta officials arrested Kaung Thaik Soe—who created the Kaung For You online school—and two other teachers who were taking part in the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) in the southern Shan State town of Aungban. They were identified as Thant Sin Htike and Win Bo.

Kaung Thaik Soe was the deputy education officer in Mandalay’s Myittha Township until he joined the CDM after the 2021 coup and was wanted by the military for incitement after leading a teachers’ strike.

With some 30,000 students enrolled, his Kaung For You school—recognised by the NUG’s education ministry—had become one of the most popular alternative private education options for students who refused to participate in the military-run school system.

In early June, the data identifying students enrolled at the school, including their names, phone numbers, and addresses, were leaked. Several parents reported in early July that they had received phone calls from individuals claiming to be Kaung For You teachers and trying to extort money from them.

It is not known exactly how much information was leaked or if the information had fallen into the military’s hands.

Amid the controversy, Kaung For You announced on July 8 that an individual from the school’s “inner circle” had exposed the data and that the organisation’s leadership would take action against the perpetrator.

Unconfirmed reports emerged days later regarding the arrest of school founder Kaung Thaik Soe, which Myanmar Now was unable to independently verify at the time.

The school soon announced a temporary closure.

The junta has accused Kaung Thaik Soe and the two teachers arrested with him of of disrupting the state’s public education system and working with the NUG, which it has labelled a “terrorist” organisation. Military mouthpieces have also claimed that the three individuals misused donations and that they were arrested at a brothel.

The NUG’s education ministry issued a response on Sunday calling the junta’s statement “unbelievably fabricated” news and rejecting the allegations against Kaung For You as “military shenanigans.” Ministry officials speculated that the military had made the accusations in an attempt to destroy the public image of teachers participating in the CDM.

Naung Cho, a member of the strike committee for basic education staff, told Myanmar Now that the junta was trying to slander teachers for promoting interim education programming in response to the military’s attempted takeover of the sector.

“They are trying to brainwash people into thinking that the teachers are misusing public funds, and they are misportraying the people’s revolution,” Naung Cho, who is also a teacher, said.

Junta spokesperson Gen Zaw Min Tun told a propaganda news outlet on Monday that the military council would not be taking action against the students and parents enrolled in the Kaung For You school.

However, following the data leak and initial arrests, at least 30 teachers suspected of association with the school have reportedly been detained by junta authorities, according to local sources.

Those arrested were from Magway, Mandalay, Tanintharyi and Sagaing regions, as well as Shan and Mon states.

Two individuals arrested late last week in Mandalay’s Pakokku Township were identified as Khin Marlar Nwe and Su Myat Thandar. According to the anti-junta Pakokku Township People’s Administration Group, the two had been taking part in the CDM but had no connection to the Kaung For You school.

A source close to a third victim in Mandalay said that the men who carried out the arrest had a copy of the teacher’s household registration document, as well as knowledge of other personal information.

Junta authorities also seized property belonging to the targeted teachers, including phones and laptops, leading to further exposure of their personal data, said the sources close to the victims

Another person working as a teaching supervisor for Kaung For You in Meiktila Township, Mandalay, was arrested on July 14, according to a source familiar with the incident.

“They said they had to question him about something and they took him. Since he is a teaching supervisor, he had the data of other teachers and students. His laptop was seized too. We asked those teachers and students to flee immediately,” said the source.

Five teachers from Tanintharyi Region’s Myeik Township were also detained at 11:30pm on the same day, said a local on the condition of anonymity.

“They were arrested for illegal association and told that their cases would be submitted to Naypyitaw and that they would be charged,” he said, referring to the junta’s administrative capital.

He told Myanmar Now that some 10 military authorities in three army vehicles came to carry out the arrests and that a local administrator had guided them to the teachers’ location.

It is still unknown where the dozens of detained teachers are being held.

The NUG has stated that the arrest of teachers taking part in the CDM is a blatant violation of the right to education declared in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Police filed a fresh charge of royal defamation against a monarchy critic who took a swipe at a recent court ruling, a civil rights lawyer group said, while a politician faced a criminal complaint for referencing the political crisis in Sri Lanka.

Weha Saenchonchanasuek, 37, visited the police’s cybercrime division on Monday to acknowledge and contest the charge, according to a report released by the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights. The attorneys said it’s Weha’s third count of royal defamation; the complaint was lodged to the police by an online group of hardline monarchy supporters.

Weha was released after questioning without having to post any bail, the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights added. The activist was imprisoned for nearly 100 days in a pretrial detention on previous charges of lèse majesté earlier this year, before the court granted him bail release in June.

Royal defamation, or lèse majesté, is punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

According to the Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, Weha was slapped with the latest royal defamation charge after he posted about a court verdict in March that sentenced a man named Narin to 3 years in jail for placing a sticker on a public portrait of King Vajiralongkorn. The court said Narin’s act amounted to showing disrespect to the monarch, since the sticker depicted the logo of a Facebook group known for satirizing the Royal Family.

In an online post, Weha reportedly wrote sarcastic remarks about the verdict, arguing that if royal pictures are considered sacred and inviolable, he would proceed to dispose of all of the portraits from public view, away from any further sticker-posting degradation.

The Thai Lawyer for Human Rights said Weha also posted a photo of himself standing next to the empty frame of a King Vajiralongkorn portrait at an undisclosed location, prompting the charge.

The group noted that at least 205 people have been charged with lèse majesté since November 2020, when the authorities began to employ the royal insult law aggressively in response to the street protests calling for reforms of the monarchy at the time.

On Wednesday, a group of campaigners petitioned the United Nations office in Bangkok to urge its human rights commissioner to look into the widespread use of the royal defamation charge and jailings of activists.

One of the petitioners, Pakkavadee Veerapaspong, said there were currently 23 people behind bars in Thailand for charges or offenses related to their political affiliation. She called on the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to remind the Thai government of its obligation to international treaties on rights to fair trial and freedom of expression.

Political dissidents continue to face legal backlash for their public campaigns and online remarks critical of the authorities. Just this Tuesday, a hardline pro-monarchy activist filed criminal complaints against former Pheu Thai MP Tossaporn Srirak, accusing him of sedition.

The complaint urged the police to launch an investigation of Tossaporn for his Facebook post, which poses the rhetorical question, “Do you want it like the UK or Sri Lanka?”

Tossaporn further explained that the British Prime Minister was recently forced to resign, while Sri Lanka’s president had to flee the country amid massive protests.

The royalist who filed the complaint, Sonthiya Sawasdee, told reporters that Tossaporn’s words could be construed as calling for unlawful insurrection against PM Prayut and his government.

Yuan Shanshan, the wife of Beijing human rights lawyer Xie Yanyi, recently disclosed that her six-year-old child has reached school age and was refused admission because their house is a rental and they do not have a Beijing hukou (household registration). Immediately after she disclosed the fact online, authorities manipulated her phone. They blocked her personal WeChat account, and she cannot answer phone calls.

On the 11th, Yuan Shanshan disclosed on her personal Twitter account that Xie Yanyi and her third child, Xie Xinai, have reached school age. They followed the requirements of the Miyun District Education Commission in Beijing, where they live. After a tedious preparation process, they obtained the approval letter to study in Miyun District, Beijing. However, they were rejected when they applied to the nearest school in the city, and their request was delayed until the end of the application period and hence missed the opportunity to enroll.

After the incident, Yuan Shanshan filed an information disclosure application with the Miyun District Education Commission in Beijing, requesting to disclose the legal basis for refusing her child’s enrollment. The official pretext is that “without the city’s household registration, school-age children without housing in the city cannot enroll in the urban district.” Yuan Shanshan questioned that the provisions formulated by the education department had no legal basis and demanded that the Miyun District Education Commission must analyze the legal basis for such provisions.

The Miyun District Education Commission and Director Yang Fujun did not respond to Yuan Shanshan’s admission consultation. Yuan Shanshan also did not receive an acknowledging receipt from the Education Commission, and Zheng Lihua, the head of the elementary education department, informed that her children could not go to school in the urban district.

When the negotiation failed, Yuan Shanshan brought her daughter to the Miyun District Education Committee and protested with a placard that read, “Educational discrimination, I want to go to school.”

Yuan Shanshan asked netizens to call the Beijing Miyun District Education Commission to protect her daughter Xie Xinai’s right to attend school and urged the Beijing Miyun District Education Commission to formulate legal provisions.

On July 12, Yuan Shanshan found out that her personal cell phone was controlled, she could no longer answer calls, and her WeChat account was blocked. “I just want my children to attend school, and it is a bit of a waste of national resources for the relevant authorities to go to war over this,” she said.

Lawyer Xie Yanyi from Hebei, a well-known human rights lawyer, lost his freedom in an operation arresting lawyers on July 9, 2015. He and Yuan Shanshan’s third child, Xie Xinai, was born while Chinese authorities secretly imprisoned Xie Yanyi. Yuan Shanshan’s pregnancy and the wives of several other human rights lawyers left an impactful impression during their wide appeal for the freedom of Yuan’s husband. Xie Xinai is now 6 years old and will be of school age in 2022. Due to China’s outdated household registration system, even if they live in Beijing for an extended period, their household registration is still in their “hometown” and cannot be transferred to Beijing. Non-Beijing household registration makes it difficult for children to enroll in schools in Beijing.

Compulsory education in China originally had no conditions. The government education department has the responsibility to ensure that school-age children are enrolled. Local education departments should not abuse their power to arbitrarily deprive or restrict children’s right to education. At present, it is uncertain whether Yuan Shanshan’s right to fight for her daughter’s education will be realized.

“It’s been seven years since 709 (crackdown), and the only thing that hasn’t changed is the defending of rights,” Yuan Shanshan said.