(Beijing – August 14, 2025) Yin Xu’an, a human rights defender from Daye City, Hubei Province, who suffers from severe hypertension and related complications, recently traveled to Beijing seeking medical treatment but was forcibly taken away by local government personnel en route. At the time of the incident, government personnel had promised to “respect the right to medical treatment,” but then suddenly reneged, raising serious concerns about his personal safety.
From Promise to Forcible Removal
Yin Xu’an, a resident of Bao’an Town, Daye City, has long exposed chaos in local stability maintenance and supported human rights lawyers, which led to repeated suppression, surveillance, and imprisonment. After his release from prison in 2023, multiple medical care requests to treat his illness were denied. On August 9, 2025, Yin traveled to Beijing despite the risks, staying temporarily at a friend’s home.
On August 12, Secretary Xu Yuefei of the Daye City Political and Legal Affairs Commission and others arrived at his residence, verbally promising “not to interfere with medical treatment.” With that assurance, Yin’s friend called the 120 emergency line.
When the ambulance arrived to take him to the hospital, the situation changed abruptly. Eyewitnesses said government personnel at the scene quickly surrounded Yin Xu’an and forcibly took him away without presenting any legal documents.
Yin Xu’an: Protest via video – Prepared to ‘Resist to the Point of Death’
The day before he was taken, Yin Xu’an, anticipating the possibility of being abducted again, recorded and released four videos recounting his experiences and denouncing long-term illegal surveillance, detention, and torture. He named Deputy Captain Chen Dunyao of the Daye City Public Security Bureau State Security Division and Political and Secretary Xu Yuefei of the Legal Affairs Commission among those involved in monitoring or persecuting him.
History of Surveillance, Torture, and Illegal Detention:
● 2015: He was detained for exposing the petition-interception blocklist.
● After the “709 Crackdown”: Arrested for supporting Wu Gan, served three and a half years in prison, during which he suffered an eye injury.
● 2019: He was detained for photographing a license plate reading “8964” in commemoration of June 4; his leg was beaten and remains unhealed.
During incarceration, his blood pressure reached 300/220, and the detention center issued multiple critical condition notices.
After completing his sentence on December 22, 2023, he was secretly held at the 4th Hospital of Daye City for 490 days, only 14 days after release.
Yin said those 490 days were the days when he suffered the most torture and was at his most hopeless period of his life. He was repeatedly beaten by unknown men, and they were only forced to a stop because he lost consciousness.
In the videos, he said:
“They said: ‘If you die, that is one less troublemaker in Hubei. If we beat you to death, we will not be held responsible. You are a key target personally named by the Provincial Political and Legal Affairs Commission’s Secretary.”
During this detention, Yin attempted hunger strikes many times, head-banging on the wall attempting to take his own life, cutting his wrists with glass, and hanging himself with bedsheets. His longest hunger strike lasted 35 days. His right eye was beaten until it bled and swollen with a lump, yet he received no adequate medical care.
2025 Trip to Beijing: Attempt to Receive Treatment was Unsuccessful, Abducted Again
Yin revealed that since his release in April, he has been under round-the-clock surveillance, requiring approval even to visit a hospital. He repeatedly requested to visit Beijing’s Fuwai Hospital to receive treatment for his high-risk hypertension, but was never approved.
On July 28, when he brought a referral to Beijing West Railway Station, he was intercepted by Daye City Public Security Bureau’s Deputy Chief Shi Rui and forcibly taken back by a team led by State Security Deputy Captain Chen Dunyao.
On August 9, he entered Beijing again, sleeping one night in a park to avoid phone confiscation before contacting a friend for help with medical arrangements. Just as he was preparing to leave, local government personnel arrived, and on August 12, he was abducted again.
Yin Xu’an’s Last Words: ‘I Love Life, But I am Ready to Sacrifice’
In the final video, Yin expressed both despair and determination to resist:
“Unless I am allowed to go to Fuwai Hospital for treatment, I will not leave my friend’s home. I am ready to resist to the point of death. Despite experiencing all this inhumane treatment, I still love this country, my family, and my friends, and I cherish my life. I hope the public will pay attention to me and help me stay alive.”
This video became Yin Xu’an’s last public statement before being taken away.
Legal Analysis: A Citizen’s Right to Medical Treatment and the Right to Freedom of Former Prisoners Cannot Be Stripped
Legal scholars point out that under the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China, the Basic Healthcare and Health Promotion Law, and various other laws and regulations, all citizens, including those who have completed prison sentences, enjoy equal rights to medical care and personal freedom. If the government restricts personal freedom and blocks access to medical care in the name of “stability maintenance,” it constitutes illegal detention and administrative overreach, seriously violating fundamental human rights.
Human rights groups note that in recent years, China has increasingly used “soft detention” tactics against activists who were formerly imprisoned, including forced stays, secret detention, travel restrictions, and medical obstruction. These practices not only violate domestic law but also run counter to international obligations under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention Against Torture.
No Official Response Yet; The Public Continues to Keep Watch
As of now, the Daye City government and relevant public security departments have not made any public statement on the incident. Yin Xu’an’s whereabouts remain unknown, and his health is a matter of concern.
Multiple human rights organizations and legal professionals are calling for:
● Immediate disclosure of Yin Xu’an’s exact location and health condition;
● Guarantee of his fundamental right to healthcare and personal freedom;
● Accountability for those responsible for illegal interception and secret detention.
China Aid will continue to closely monitor the situation.
Reported by Special Correspondent Gao Zhensai for ChinaAid