(Zhenxiong, Yunnan Province – May 2, 2024) On April 16, 2024, the family of preacher Chang Hao from Zhenxiong County, Yunnan Province sent an open letter seeking help to the Yunnan Higher People’s Court, Zhaotong City People’s Court, and Zhenxiong County People’s Court. The letter pointed out the illegal actions from the investigation, prosecution to trial process of Chang Hao’s case of being charged with “picking quarrels and provoking trouble”, and called on the judicial departments to take the lead in abiding by the law and give the law its due dignity.
Preacher Chang Hao, who suffers from diabetes, has been summoned by the police many times due to his Christian faith and long-term voicing for social justice issues. On the evening of April 14, 2023, Chang Hao was taken away by the Zhenxiong Public Security Bureau, and the Bibles, spiritual books, and gospel masks in his home were all seized. On May 15, Chang Hao was approved for arrest on suspicion of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble.” On November 23, 2023, after two supplementary investigations, Chang Hao was prosecuted to the Zhenxiong County People’s Court by the Procuratorate for the crime of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble.” The Procuratorate accused him of “repeatedly publishing and forwarding false information and inappropriate remarks on the Internet, causing serious disruption of public order and adverse social impact.” But Chang Hao does not agree with the charges of the public security organs and the Procuratorate, and insists on not pleading guilty or accepting punishment. When he was at home, he often said that citizens have the freedom of speech and the right to criticize and make suggestions to any state organs and authorities. After Chang Hao was arrested, his defense lawyers were rejected five times in a row when applying to meet with Chang Hao, who was charged with “picking quarrels and provoking trouble”, until the sixth application on August 11, 2023, when they were approved and able to meet with Chang Hao. After Chang Hao revealed to his lawyers that he could only take cold showers in the detention center in winter and had to wash his clothes despite having level 2 disability, he was targeted and treated more harshly by the detention center staff.
One year after the arrest of Preacher Chang Hao, a pretrial meeting was held on the afternoon of April 11, 2024, and a full day of trial was conducted on April 12. Chang Hao’s two lawyers appeared in court to defend him as not guilty. In the open letter, Chang Hao’s family said that they are “nobody” from the rural mountainous area, writing to the judicial authorities to seek help and appeal, asking them to protect Chang Hao’s legal rights according to the law and to try his case fairly. There were too many illegal acts in this case from the investigation to the review and prosecution stage. Unexpectedly, even in the trial stage, the judge who should be impartial also violated the law in the trial and infringed on Chang Hao’s legal rights. The open letter listed the following three types of illegal acts by the judicial authorities:
- Illegal non-public trial of the “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” case.
On March 2, 2024, the court had originally scheduled a trial, and the lawyers had also arrived at the court. However, the trial could not proceed smoothly, not only because the lawyers did not agree to let Chang Hao attend the trial by video, but also because they did not agree with the court’s decision not to hold a public trial. At the pretrial meeting on April 11 and the trial on April 12, both defense lawyers insisted on requesting a public trial of the case, and reminded the court that not holding a public trial of the “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” case violates the principle of public trial in the “Criminal Procedure Law,” and that not holding a public trial when it should be held publicly is a statutory reason for appeal for retrial. Proceeding with the trial in such an illegal manner not only tramples on the law, but is also a great waste of judicial resources.
- The court did not notify Chang Hao of the trial three days in advance as required by law.
According to the law, the defendant and his defense lawers must be notified three days before the trial. For the trial originally planned for March 25, the court did not notify Chang Hao three days in advance, and the lawyers had already raised objections. At the pretrial meeting on April 11, the lawyers learned from Chang Hao that the court not only did not notify him of the pretrial meeting in advance, but also did not notify him of the trial on April 12. The lawyers pointed out in court that this violates the provisions of the “Criminal Procedure Law” and is a deprivation of Chang Hao’s litigation rights. But in the eyes of Presiding Judge Shen Shiwang and other members of the collegial panel, these seem to be unimportant.
- Zhenxiong County People’s Court and Zhenxiong County Detention Center are suspected of illegally detaining Chang Hao beyond the time limit.
On March 7, 2024, Chang Hao told his lawyers that the validity period of his “detention warrant” was until February 10, 2024, but he was still detained in the detention center without receiving a new detention warrant. After the lawyers reported this to the Procuratorate, someone sent a new detention warrant around March 10, but Chang Hao refused to illegally sign it retroactively. In the trial, the lawyers pointed out that Chang Hao’s case had exceeded the time limit, and if there was no decision to extend the trial and no new detention warrant, it would be an illegal detention of Chang Hao beyond the time limit.
At the end of the trial on April 12, the prosecutor proposed a sentencing recommendation in court: one year or less. This is already a significant decrease compared to the initial maximum sentencing recommendation of one and a half years. Although this is a wrongful and unjust case, the family is also preparing to “accept” this outcome. Because the lawyers told the family that according to the usual practice, this means that Chang Hao is very likely to have his compulsory measures changed on April 14, when he has been detained for a full year. The judge had also indicated to the lawyers before the trial that he would try to release Chang Hao as soon as possible before the one-year detention period was up. Therefore, the lawyers also tried their best to cooperate in promoting the trial. After the trial, Chang Hao’s family prepared new clothes and waited for Chang Hao to return home with anticipation. But their goodwill did not bring about the goodwill of the Zhenxiong People’s Court and Presiding Judge Shen Shiwang. They have not yet received a notification from the court.
Chang Hao’s family said in the open letter:
We ask the Zhenxiong People’s Court, the collegial panel, and Presiding Judge Shen Shiwang, now that the prosecutor has recommended a sentence of one year or less, how much longer do you want to keep Chang Hao, a person with level 2 physical disability, in detention? We ask the Zhenxiong People’s Court, the collegial panel, and Presiding Judge Shen Shiwang, as judicial organs and judges, shouldn’t you maintain the correct implementation of the law and take the lead in abiding by the law?
We respect your authority, but we also hope that you will use the power in your hands well.
Regarding the illegal acts of the court and judges, we, the family members, reserve the right to sue.
