China Aid Association
(Beijing – Dec. 18, 2010) One of China’s foremost legal scholars and a leading human rights lawyer, Fan Yafeng, returned home Saturday morning after being in police detention for nine days, ChinaAid has learned.
Unfortunately, Dr. Fan has not won his freedom, despite being allowed to go home at 10 a.m. Saturday Dec. 18. He remains under house arrest, per a police order that went into effect on Nov. 1.
Dr. Fan is a leading advocate of constitutional democracy and the head of Christian Human Rights Lawyers of China, the Shengshan (Holy Mountain) Culture Research Institute and the Shengshan (Holy Mountain) Church.
After taking Dr. Fan into custody on Dec. 9 and telling his wife he would be released in four days, authorities illegally detained the Christian lawyer beyond the permissible time period.
In the meantime, police also interrogated Dr. Fan’s wife, calling her in for questioning at 8 p.m. Dec. 12 and keeping her in custody for eight hours of interrogation through the night. While she was in detention, police searched the couple’s home and Dr. Fan’s research institute and church and confiscated 37 items from the couple’s apartment and 77 items from the institute and church premises, including Dr. Fan’s personal computer, cellphone, camera, bank ATM cards, 19,100 yuan (US$2,870) in cash and copies of a magazine published by the research institute.
These moves as well as the focus of the eight-hour interrogation of Dr. Fan’s wife Wu Lingling all suggest that the authorities are preparing a criminal case against Dr. Fan. None of the confiscated items has been returned, which may mean that police will return and search the premises again in hopes of finding incriminating evidence to use in prosecuting Dr. Fan.
In a related development, Ran Liang, a close friend and classmate of Dr. Fan who is from the same hometown, has also been put under house arrest after buying some fruit and going to visit Dr. Fan’s wife a few days ago.
ChinaAid Association calls on friends and Christians worldwide to pay close attention to the developments in this case.
China Aid Contacts
Rachel Ritchie, English Media Director
Cell: (432) 553-1080 | Office: 1+ (888) 889-7757 | Other: (432) 689-6985
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.chinaaid.org
