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Tuesday July 22, 2:43 PMChina jails dissident before end of parole: group
Du Daobin, an activist from central China's Hubei province, was imprisoned on Monday, just ahead of the August 4 expiry of his probation period, the Information Centre for Human Rights and Democracy said. "The Du Daobin case is a classic example of the authorities' stepped-up crackdown on dissidents ahead of the (Beijing) Olympics," the centre said in a statement. Du was put back in jail because he "broke the rules" by issuing "subversive articles," according to the rights group. A court in the Hubei city of Xiaogan convicted Du of subversion in June 2004 for posting 26 essays on the Internet that contained varying degrees of anti-government content. He was sentenced to three years in jail, a sentence that was upheld on appeal. Officials at the court were not immediately available for comment. Du's October 2003 arrest prompted more than 100 Chinese intellectuals to sign a petition calling for his release and demanding official clarification of exactly what activities constituted "incitement to subvert state power." Chinese dissidents say many people have been detained or intimidated as part of a broad crackdown by China's communist rulers to silence critics ahead of the Olympic Games that begin on August 8. One of the most high profile is Hu Jia, who was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison after a one-day trial in April on charges of inciting subversion. In a letter to Chinese President Hu Jintao, Amnesty International earlier this month called for improved human rights in China ahead of the Games, including the release of political prisoners. |
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