11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

Dozens of CDP leaders, activists, and members have been arrested, detained, or confined ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 23367]

"Official statements asserted that "the political party system China has adopted is multiparty cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the Communist Party of China." However, the CCP retained a monopoly on political power and forbade the creation of new political parties. The government recognized nine parties founded prior to 1949, but not the CDP, an opposition party founded in 1998 and subsequently declared illegal. Dozens of CDP leaders, activists, and members have been arrested, detained, or confined. One of the CDP's founders, Qin Yongmin, who was imprisoned in 1998, remained in prison at year's end, as did others connected with a 2002 open letter calling for political reform and reappraisal of the 1989 Tiananmen massacre. In September 2006 authorities detained CDP leader Chen Shuqing on suspicion of inciting "to subvert state power," and in August the Hangzhou Intermediate court sentenced Chen to four years' imprisonment and one year's deprivation of political rights. More than 30 current or former CDP members reportedly remained imprisoned or held in reeducation-through-labor camps, including Zhang Lin, Sang Jiancheng, He Depu, Yang Tianshui, Wang Rongqing, and Jiang Lijun."

Document(s): Open document

06.03.2007 - Source: US Department of State

CDP remaines banned ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2006") [ID 19095]

"No laws or regulations specifically govern the formation of political parties. But the CDP remained banned, and the government continued to monitor, detain, and imprison current and former CDP members (see section 3). As in past years, individuals were charged with and convicted of "disclosing state secrets" after passing information to human rights NGOs based abroad (see section 4)."

Document(s): Open document

06.03.2007 - Source: US Department of State

Dozens of CDP leaders, activists, and members arrested, detained, or confined ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2006") [ID 19150]

"The CCP retained a monopoly on political power and forbade the creation of new political parties. The government recognized nine parties founded prior to 1949, but not the CDP, an opposition party founded in 1998 and subsequently declared illegal. Dozens of CDP leaders, activists, and members have been arrested, detained, or confined. One of the CDP's founders, Qin Yongmin, remained in prison at year's end, as did others connected with a 2002 open letter calling for political reform and reappraisal of the 1989 Tiananmen massacre. On September 14, authorities released CDP leader Zhu Yufu after he completed a seven-year sentence for participating in prodemocracy activities. On the same day, authorities detained CDP leader Chen Shuqing on suspicion of inciting "to subvert state power." More than 30 current or former CDP members reportedly remained imprisoned or held in reeducation-through-labor camps, including Zhang Lin, Zhao Changqing, Sang Jiancheng, He Depu, Yang Tianshui, Wang Rongqing, and Jiang Lijun."

Document(s): Open document

10.2006 - Source: Amnesty International

Interview with former student leader Wang Youcai, who co-founded Democratic Party of China and was imprisoned for his promotion of democracy; information on Democratic Party of China, political situation, Youcai's trial and prison conditions ("»Kurzer Prozess« - Ein Gespräch mit dem ehemaligen Studentenführer Wang Youcai") [ID 17930]

Document(s): Open document

22.08.2006 - Source: Guardian

Hong Kong: Police searching for 3 men who brutally attacked Albert Ho, vice-chairman of Democratic party and member of legislature ("Hong Kong politician attacked") [ID 17931]

Document(s): Open document

04.2005 - Source: UK Home Office

Country Report April 2005 - China Democracy Party (CDP) ("Country Report - April 2005") [#31975],  [ID 3566]

"6.178 As reported by the BBC on 4 March 2004, the China Democratic Party (CDP) was set up by dissidents in 1998 and was the first attempt to legally register an opposition party. The Communist Party quickly crushed it and at least 30-members were sentenced to jail terms of up to 13 years. [9as]

6.179 As reported by the HRW in September 2000, “Concrete ideas for creating an opposition party originated in late 1997. Wang Youcai, a former student activist who had been jailed for two years for involvement in the 1989 pro-democracy movement, discussed the formation of an opposition party with a group of other dissidents.” [7a] (p 1-2 of section III)

6.180 As noted by HRW, “The CDP was to be based on the principles of “openness” (gongkai), “peace” (heping), “reason” (lixing), and “legality” (an falu). Its aim was to establish direct elections and the formation of a multi-party system.”
[...]

6.182 According to a report by the Canadian IRB dated 12 September 2002, “No information on the Chinese Democratic Party founded in 1990 in Beijing, as distinct from the Chinese Democratic Party founded in 1998, could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.” [3o]

6.183 As reported by the official People’s Daily newspaper on 10 May 2003, the Intermediate People’s court in Lianoyang City sentenced two former steel workers to seven and four years imprisonment for attempting to overthrow state power and trying to set-up the Lianoyang branch of the China Democratic Party. [12e]

6.184 According to the report, “The court ruled that evidence proved that the two [Yao Fuxin and Xiao Yunliang] were guilty of crimes of subversion in accordance with articles 105 and 106 of the Criminal Law.” [12e]

6.185 As reported by the NGO Labor Rights Now on 24 October 2003:
“Yao Fuxin and Xiao Yunliang, along with Wang Zhaoming, Gu Baoshu (both released from detention on bail pending trial) and Pang Qingxiang (unconditionally released), were first detained in March and April 2002 for their involvement in mass protests at the Liaoyang Ferroalloy Factory in Liaoyang. The workers were protesting at the alleged corruption in the factory, which had earlier led to its bankruptcy, and against missing and unpaid wages and other benefits including pensions.” [8bs]

6.186 According to AI in their January 2004 report, Controls tighten as Internet activism grows, of the 54 people detained and sentenced for Internet activism eight were CDP members/sympathisers (figures accurate up 7 January 2004)."

Document(s): Open document

10.2003 - Source: UK Home Office

Country Assessment - October 2003 - China Democracy Party ("Country Report - October 2003") [#49232],  [ID 3567]

"China Democratic Party

6.171. On 10 July 1998, Wang Youcai tried to register a China Democratic Party with Zhejiang provincial authorities, the first open attempt to gain government approval for an opposition party. The CDP had previously announced it's presence on 25 June 1998 with an "Open declaration" setting out its agenda to establish a democratic opposition party. [12f] It was reported that Yang was turned away and detained for six hours by the police. Another member of the group, Zhu Yufu, was detained for 47 hours for handing out copies of the manifesto during President Clinton's visit. The activists announced that they had shelved the attempt to register the political party after one week, when Clinton's visit was coming to an end. [4f] Nevertheless, Wang Youcai and up to 4 others were subsequently arrested and detained. [18] A number of other dissidents were detained or had their movements restricted during Clinton's visit. [4q] One source (published in 2000) claims that CDP members are still being arrested, with more than 20 leading members sentenced to prison terms during 1999 / 2000. [6t]

6.172. The core philosophy of the CDP was one of "openness, peace, reason and legality" and its two main objectives were to press for direct elections and the formation of a multiparty system. [12f]

6.173. Subsequent attempts to set up the China Democratic Party (CDP) have led to a number of arrests in Beijing and the provinces. [4s] In some places, activists were harassed or temporarily detained, while in others local officials met with dissidents and explained the requirements for registering social organisations. [2d] In December 1998 Xu Wenli, Qin Yongmin and Wang Youcai were sentenced to 13,12 and 11 years in prison respectively, on subversion charges. [16a]

6.174. By the end of 1999, almost all of the key leaders of the China Democracy Party were serving long prison terms or were in custody without formal charges. With only a handful of activists remained publicly active in 1999. [2e] In March 1999, Amnesty International (AI) reported that many scores of people had been detained, harassed and imprisoned solely for peacefully exercising the rights protected by the two UN Covenants on Human Rights that China had recently signed. [6j]

6.175. CDP members were active in the 4 June commemorative protests around June 1999. Four CDP members were sentenced in December 1999, in Hangzhou, for various activities, with sentences between five and eleven years. [3am]

6.176. The international human rights organisation, Human Rights Watch, concluded in September 2000, that "for all practical purposes, CDP activities had been silenced by January 2000." [12f] Another party, the Chinese Freedom and Democracy Party (CFDP), established in 1994 and closely associated with the dissident Lian Shengde [22ca], was also held to be defunct by 1999 as well. [22bz] The CFDP's website was not maintained after 1998. [22cb]

6.177. On the 9 May 2003, the Intermediate People's Court in Liaoyang City, Liasoning province, sentenced two former industrial workers to seven and four years in prison for taking an “active part” in trying to set up a Liasoning branch of the CDP. Yao Fuxon and Xian Yunliang were found guilty of the crime of subversion under articles 105 and 106 of the criminal law after leading protests for better severance pay for laid off state workers in Liasoning province. The protests were among the most serious reported in China since 1949. Yao and Xiao's trial lasted one day and their lawyer was not allowed to attend sentencing (because of travel restrictions imposed after SARS). [20bd.][21p.] The Higher People's Court upheld their conviction on 27 June 2003. Their lawyer complained that he was not notified of the hearing or allowed to submit new evidence. [21o.]

6.178. The families of notable dissidents, particularly those, who become spokespeople, are often kept under heavy surveillance and may be subjected to frequent police questioning and visits. [3f][4b][6f] For example, the police briefly detained the mother of exiled dissident Wang Dan on 15 October to prevent foreign journalists interviewing her, amid speculation that Wang Dan was about to receive the Nobel Peace prize. [4ci] There were reports of closer surveillance of CDP members during the 16th National People's Congress. [21q.]

6.179. The Canadian Embassy Political Counsellor noted that in Fuzhou, there was no evidence of activity by "illegal" political parties, trade unions, or other "illegal" social organisations. [3r][3w]"

Document(s): Open document

05.08.2003 - Source: World Organisation Against Torture

OMCT: Dissident Zhao Changqing, charged with inciting subversion of state power for drafting of a letter calling for political reformas, sentenced to five years in prison/ he reportedly received an unfair trial ("China: dissident Zhao Changqing sentenced to five years in prison [Case CHN 090103.6, Follow-up of Case CHN 090103]") [#14840],  [ID 3568]

"Mr. Changqing's arrest, detention, and sentencing are the result of his drafting of an open letter to China's 16th Party Congress, which was later signed by 192 opposition activists, calling for political reform. The letter included six political demands including; a reassessment of the 1989 democracy movement; allowing political exiles to return to China; restoring Zhao Ziyang's political rights and releasing him for house arrest; releasing all prisoners of conscience; pushing the National People’s Congress to ratify the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and bringing domestic law into conformity with international treaties; and expanding democratic elections from the villages and municipalities to national elections.

The majority of the other dissidents detained in connection to the open letter, including Ouyang Yi, Dai Xuezhong, Han Lifa, Sang Jiancheng, He Depu, and Jiang Lijun, remain detained."

Document(s): Open document

30.06.2003 - Source: World Organisation Against Torture

OMCT: A Xi'an based dissident formally charged with inciting subversion of state power/ his arrest, detention, and charging is the result of his drafting of an open letter to China's 16th Party Congress, later signed by 192 opposition activists calling for political reform ("China: dissident Zhao Changqing formally charged with inciting subversion of state power [Case CHN 090103.5, Follow-up of Case CHN 090103]") [#13947],  [ID 3569]

"Mr. Changqing's arrest, detention, and charging is the result of his drafting of an open letter to China's 16th Party Congress, later signed by 192 opposition activists calling for political reform. The letter included six political demands including; a reassessment of the 1989 democracy movement; allowing political exiles to return to China; restoring Zhao Ziyang's political rights and releasing him for house arrest; releasing all prisoners of conscience; pushing the National People’s Congress to ratify the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and bringing domestic law into conformity with international treaties; and expanding democratic elections from the villages and municipalities to national elections.

The majority of the other dissidents detained in connection to the open letter, including Ouyang Yi, Dai Xuezhong, Han Lifa, Sang Jiancheng, He Depu, and Jiang Lijun, remain detained. OMCT recalls that Zhao Changqing was suffering from tuberculosis when he was arrested and that his health has reportedly deteriorated significantly since then, giving rise to fears for his personal integrity.

The International Secretariat of OMCT is gravely concerned for the personal and psychological integrity of Zhao Changqing, given the fact that his health is deteriorating due to illness, as well as Ouyang Yi, Dai Xuezhong, Jiang Lijun, He Depu, Han Lifa and the other signatories that are being detained, notably given that many of them are being detained incommunicado and therefore are at a heightened risk of being subjected to ill-treatment or torture."

Document(s): Open document

12.03.2003 - Source: World Organisation Against Torture

OMCT: Dissident He Depu arrested in conjunction with the signing of an open letter to the 16th Party Congress in Beijing has formally been charged with inciting the overthrow of the state power/ before being charged he was detained incommunicado for 4 months ("China: He Depu is the latest dissident to be formally detained [Case CHN 090103.2, Follow-up of Case 090103]") [#11365],  [ID 3571]

"He Depu, after being detained for four months, has formally been charged with inciting the overthrow of the state power. He was arrested on November 4, 2002 in conjunction with the signing of an open letter to the 16th Party Congress in Beijing. This letter was reportedly signed by 192 dissidents and called for political reform. He Depu was reportedly held in incommunicado detention for the period of time between November 4, 2002 and March 6, 2003."

Document(s): Open document

16.01.2003 - Source: World Organisation Against Torture

OMCT: Arrest and incommunicado detention of at least six dissidents and 3 internet activists ("China: arrest and incommunicado detention of at least six political dissidents as well as three Internet dissidents [Case CHN 090103.1, Follow-up of Case CHN 090103]") [#10482],  [ID 3572]

"The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by Human Rights in China of the arrest and incommunicado detention of at least six dissidents, who were signatories to an open letter in which they called on the authorities to take steps towards democratisation, as well as three Internet dissidents, in China."

Document(s): Open document

09.01.2003 - Source: BBC News

Dissident who signed an open letter to the Communist Party congress, urging political reform, arrested/ he was the seventh activist known to have been detained over the letter ("China in fresh dissident arrest") [#10233],  [ID 3574]

Document(s): Open document

24.12.2002 - Source: Human Rights Watch

HRW: Chinese democracy advocate Xu Wenli released but many thousands still remain unjustly imprisoned in China ("China: Release of Xu Wenli "Not Enough"") [#10083],  [ID 3575]

"The December 24 release of Chinese democracy advocate Xu Wenli is welcome, but many thousands still remain unjustly imprisoned in China, Human Rights Watch said today. Xu Wenli, who spent a total of 16 years in Chinese prisons, was sentenced most recently in December 1998 to a 13-year term for his association with the China Democracy Party (CDP)."

Document(s): Open document

01.09.2000 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Report documenting the Chinese government's suppression of the China Democracy Party ("Nipped In The Bud:The Suppression Of The China Democracy Party") [#19518],  [ID 3577]

"This report documents the Chinese government's reaction to the efforts of a small number of democracy activists in 1998 and 1999 to take the first steps toward establishing a legal opposition party. It illustrates how tightly the government continues to control and restrict freedom of expression and association, despite China's signing of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and public assurances by its leaders of their concern for human rights. It shows that, while China has undergone phenomenal economic and social transformation over the last two decades, there has been no significant change in the government's policy toward any organization which overtly challenges the Communist Party's control: suppression.

The China Democracy Party (CDP), a loosely linked group of political activists, operating nationwide, emerged in mid-1998. It was significant because it was the first time since the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 that an attempt was made to obtain the formal legal registration of an opposition political party. Over the next eighteen months, however, it was systematically crushed. Known members of the CDP were summarily arrested and detained, and though most were held for relatively brief periods, at least thirty-four of them were sentenced to prison terms of up to thirteen years on charges of attempted subversion. At least four others fled into exile abroad. Others, who remain in China but are not in prison, live under close police surveillance and have ceased to be openly active.

The CDP called for multiparty democracy in China and respect for human rights. Chinese leaders saw it as a group that aimed to undermine the basic principles and the monopoly of power of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). CDP members were veteran dissidents, many of them former political prisoners. They were skilled in modern communication techniques and strategic in their timing of statements and actions. They were determined to test the Chinese government's stated commitment to improved respect for human rights and willing to face the consequences of doing so.

Three of the group's founders, Wang Youcai, Wang Donghai and Lin Hui, seized the opportunity presented by U.S. President Bill Clinton's state visit to China in June 1998 to announce the formation of the CDP's first local preparatory committee in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. Then, taking advantage of the relatively relaxed political atmosphere at the time, CDP activists sought to register preparatory committees in other provinces. And as the government announced that China would sign the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), they cited that treaty's provisions on freedom of association and expression as evidence of their right to organize.

At first, local authorities to whom CDP members applied to register their preparatory committees appear to have been uncertain how to react. But when the CDP announced that it planned to create a national structure, the central government, led by National People's Congress chairman Li Peng and President Jiang Zemin, denounced the fledgling party, and CDP leaders were arrested and imprisoned. The first wave of arrests took place in November and December 1998, but neither it nor a subsequent series of arrests in May 1999 deterred the remaining CDP members from continuing their efforts to build the party, issue public statements, or hold discussion groups. It was only in late 1999 that the CDP was effectively silenced.

CDP members stressed during their efforts to obtain legal recognition that they were seeking to do so in accordance with existing laws. In the absence of regulations specifically governing the registration of political parties, they sought to register with the relevant provincial branches of the Civil Affairs Ministry in view of its responsibility for the registration of "social groups." They also invoked the Chinese constitution and official regulations on social groups issued in October 1989 and pointed to China's stated commitment to the rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Finally, when all else had failed, they tried to go directly to the State Council, China's equivalent of an executive cabinet, to register. The end result, however, was that the embryonic party was declared an "illegal organization."

The main regulation used to try and sentence CDP leaders was Article 105 of the 1997 Penal Code, which penalizes "those involved in organizing, scheming or acting to subvert the political power of the state and overthrow the socialist system." Since the offense of "counterrevolution" was dropped from the 1997 Penal Code, Article 105 has become one of the charges used by the government to punish peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, association, and assembly."

Document(s): Open document

01.09.2000 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Report documenting the Chinese government's suppression of the China Democracy Party ("Nipped In The Bud:The Suppression Of The China Democracy Party") [#19518],  [ID 3577]

"This report documents the Chinese government's reaction to the efforts of a small number of democracy activists in 1998 and 1999 to take the first steps toward establishing a legal opposition party. It illustrates how tightly the government continues to control and restrict freedom of expression and association, despite China's signing of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and public assurances by its leaders of their concern for human rights. It shows that, while China has undergone phenomenal economic and social transformation over the last two decades, there has been no significant change in the government's policy toward any organization which overtly challenges the Communist Party's control: suppression.

The China Democracy Party (CDP), a loosely linked group of political activists, operating nationwide, emerged in mid-1998. It was significant because it was the first time since the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 that an attempt was made to obtain the formal legal registration of an opposition political party. Over the next eighteen months, however, it was systematically crushed. Known members of the CDP were summarily arrested and detained, and though most were held for relatively brief periods, at least thirty-four of them were sentenced to prison terms of up to thirteen years on charges of attempted subversion. At least four others fled into exile abroad. Others, who remain in China but are not in prison, live under close police surveillance and have ceased to be openly active.

The CDP called for multiparty democracy in China and respect for human rights. Chinese leaders saw it as a group that aimed to undermine the basic principles and the monopoly of power of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). CDP members were veteran dissidents, many of them former political prisoners. They were skilled in modern communication techniques and strategic in their timing of statements and actions. They were determined to test the Chinese government's stated commitment to improved respect for human rights and willing to face the consequences of doing so.

Three of the group's founders, Wang Youcai, Wang Donghai and Lin Hui, seized the opportunity presented by U.S. President Bill Clinton's state visit to China in June 1998 to announce the formation of the CDP's first local preparatory committee in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. Then, taking advantage of the relatively relaxed political atmosphere at the time, CDP activists sought to register preparatory committees in other provinces. And as the government announced that China would sign the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), they cited that treaty's provisions on freedom of association and expression as evidence of their right to organize.

At first, local authorities to whom CDP members applied to register their preparatory committees appear to have been uncertain how to react. But when the CDP announced that it planned to create a national structure, the central government, led by National People's Congress chairman Li Peng and President Jiang Zemin, denounced the fledgling party, and CDP leaders were arrested and imprisoned. The first wave of arrests took place in November and December 1998, but neither it nor a subsequent series of arrests in May 1999 deterred the remaining CDP members from continuing their efforts to build the party, issue public statements, or hold discussion groups. It was only in late 1999 that the CDP was effectively silenced.

CDP members stressed during their efforts to obtain legal recognition that they were seeking to do so in accordance with existing laws. In the absence of regulations specifically governing the registration of political parties, they sought to register with the relevant provincial branches of the Civil Affairs Ministry in view of its responsibility for the registration of "social groups." They also invoked the Chinese constitution and official regulations on social groups issued in October 1989 and pointed to China's stated commitment to the rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Finally, when all else had failed, they tried to go directly to the State Council, China's equivalent of an executive cabinet, to register. The end result, however, was that the embryonic party was declared an "illegal organization."

The main regulation used to try and sentence CDP leaders was Article 105 of the 1997 Penal Code, which penalizes "those involved in organizing, scheming or acting to subvert the political power of the state and overthrow the socialist system." Since the offense of "counterrevolution" was dropped from the 1997 Penal Code, Article 105 has become one of the charges used by the government to punish peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, association, and assembly."

Document(s): Open document

01.09.2000 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Report documenting the Chinese government's suppression of the China Democracy Party ("Nipped In The Bud:The Suppression Of The China Democracy Party") [#19518],  [ID 3577]

"This report documents the Chinese government's reaction to the efforts of a small number of democracy activists in 1998 and 1999 to take the first steps toward establishing a legal opposition party. It illustrates how tightly the government continues to control and restrict freedom of expression and association, despite China's signing of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and public assurances by its leaders of their concern for human rights. It shows that, while China has undergone phenomenal economic and social transformation over the last two decades, there has been no significant change in the government's policy toward any organization which overtly challenges the Communist Party's control: suppression.

The China Democracy Party (CDP), a loosely linked group of political activists, operating nationwide, emerged in mid-1998. It was significant because it was the first time since the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 that an attempt was made to obtain the formal legal registration of an opposition political party. Over the next eighteen months, however, it was systematically crushed. Known members of the CDP were summarily arrested and detained, and though most were held for relatively brief periods, at least thirty-four of them were sentenced to prison terms of up to thirteen years on charges of attempted subversion. At least four others fled into exile abroad. Others, who remain in China but are not in prison, live under close police surveillance and have ceased to be openly active.

The CDP called for multiparty democracy in China and respect for human rights. Chinese leaders saw it as a group that aimed to undermine the basic principles and the monopoly of power of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). CDP members were veteran dissidents, many of them former political prisoners. They were skilled in modern communication techniques and strategic in their timing of statements and actions. They were determined to test the Chinese government's stated commitment to improved respect for human rights and willing to face the consequences of doing so.

Three of the group's founders, Wang Youcai, Wang Donghai and Lin Hui, seized the opportunity presented by U.S. President Bill Clinton's state visit to China in June 1998 to announce the formation of the CDP's first local preparatory committee in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. Then, taking advantage of the relatively relaxed political atmosphere at the time, CDP activists sought to register preparatory committees in other provinces. And as the government announced that China would sign the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), they cited that treaty's provisions on freedom of association and expression as evidence of their right to organize.

At first, local authorities to whom CDP members applied to register their preparatory committees appear to have been uncertain how to react. But when the CDP announced that it planned to create a national structure, the central government, led by National People's Congress chairman Li Peng and President Jiang Zemin, denounced the fledgling party, and CDP leaders were arrested and imprisoned. The first wave of arrests took place in November and December 1998, but neither it nor a subsequent series of arrests in May 1999 deterred the remaining CDP members from continuing their efforts to build the party, issue public statements, or hold discussion groups. It was only in late 1999 that the CDP was effectively silenced.

CDP members stressed during their efforts to obtain legal recognition that they were seeking to do so in accordance with existing laws. In the absence of regulations specifically governing the registration of political parties, they sought to register with the relevant provincial branches of the Civil Affairs Ministry in view of its responsibility for the registration of "social groups." They also invoked the Chinese constitution and official regulations on social groups issued in October 1989 and pointed to China's stated commitment to the rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Finally, when all else had failed, they tried to go directly to the State Council, China's equivalent of an executive cabinet, to register. The end result, however, was that the embryonic party was declared an "illegal organization."

The main regulation used to try and sentence CDP leaders was Article 105 of the 1997 Penal Code, which penalizes "those involved in organizing, scheming or acting to subvert the political power of the state and overthrow the socialist system." Since the offense of "counterrevolution" was dropped from the 1997 Penal Code, Article 105 has become one of the charges used by the government to punish peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, association, and assembly."

Document(s): Open document

01.09.2000 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Report documenting the Chinese government's suppression of the China Democracy Party ("Nipped In The Bud:The Suppression Of The China Democracy Party") [#19518],  [ID 3577]

"This report documents the Chinese government's reaction to the efforts of a small number of democracy activists in 1998 and 1999 to take the first steps toward establishing a legal opposition party. It illustrates how tightly the government continues to control and restrict freedom of expression and association, despite China's signing of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and public assurances by its leaders of their concern for human rights. It shows that, while China has undergone phenomenal economic and social transformation over the last two decades, there has been no significant change in the government's policy toward any organization which overtly challenges the Communist Party's control: suppression.

The China Democracy Party (CDP), a loosely linked group of political activists, operating nationwide, emerged in mid-1998. It was significant because it was the first time since the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 that an attempt was made to obtain the formal legal registration of an opposition political party. Over the next eighteen months, however, it was systematically crushed. Known members of the CDP were summarily arrested and detained, and though most were held for relatively brief periods, at least thirty-four of them were sentenced to prison terms of up to thirteen years on charges of attempted subversion. At least four others fled into exile abroad. Others, who remain in China but are not in prison, live under close police surveillance and have ceased to be openly active.

The CDP called for multiparty democracy in China and respect for human rights. Chinese leaders saw it as a group that aimed to undermine the basic principles and the monopoly of power of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). CDP members were veteran dissidents, many of them former political prisoners. They were skilled in modern communication techniques and strategic in their timing of statements and actions. They were determined to test the Chinese government's stated commitment to improved respect for human rights and willing to face the consequences of doing so.

Three of the group's founders, Wang Youcai, Wang Donghai and Lin Hui, seized the opportunity presented by U.S. President Bill Clinton's state visit to China in June 1998 to announce the formation of the CDP's first local preparatory committee in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. Then, taking advantage of the relatively relaxed political atmosphere at the time, CDP activists sought to register preparatory committees in other provinces. And as the government announced that China would sign the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), they cited that treaty's provisions on freedom of association and expression as evidence of their right to organize.

At first, local authorities to whom CDP members applied to register their preparatory committees appear to have been uncertain how to react. But when the CDP announced that it planned to create a national structure, the central government, led by National People's Congress chairman Li Peng and President Jiang Zemin, denounced the fledgling party, and CDP leaders were arrested and imprisoned. The first wave of arrests took place in November and December 1998, but neither it nor a subsequent series of arrests in May 1999 deterred the remaining CDP members from continuing their efforts to build the party, issue public statements, or hold discussion groups. It was only in late 1999 that the CDP was effectively silenced.

CDP members stressed during their efforts to obtain legal recognition that they were seeking to do so in accordance with existing laws. In the absence of regulations specifically governing the registration of political parties, they sought to register with the relevant provincial branches of the Civil Affairs Ministry in view of its responsibility for the registration of "social groups." They also invoked the Chinese constitution and official regulations on social groups issued in October 1989 and pointed to China's stated commitment to the rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Finally, when all else had failed, they tried to go directly to the State Council, China's equivalent of an executive cabinet, to register. The end result, however, was that the embryonic party was declared an "illegal organization."

The main regulation used to try and sentence CDP leaders was Article 105 of the 1997 Penal Code, which penalizes "those involved in organizing, scheming or acting to subvert the political power of the state and overthrow the socialist system." Since the offense of "counterrevolution" was dropped from the 1997 Penal Code, Article 105 has become one of the charges used by the government to punish peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, association, and assembly."

Document(s): Open document

01.09.2000 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Report documenting the Chinese government's suppression of the China Democracy Party ("Nipped In The Bud:The Suppression Of The China Democracy Party") [#19518],  [ID 3577]

"This report documents the Chinese government's reaction to the efforts of a small number of democracy activists in 1998 and 1999 to take the first steps toward establishing a legal opposition party. It illustrates how tightly the government continues to control and restrict freedom of expression and association, despite China's signing of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and public assurances by its leaders of their concern for human rights. It shows that, while China has undergone phenomenal economic and social transformation over the last two decades, there has been no significant change in the government's policy toward any organization which overtly challenges the Communist Party's control: suppression.

The China Democracy Party (CDP), a loosely linked group of political activists, operating nationwide, emerged in mid-1998. It was significant because it was the first time since the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 that an attempt was made to obtain the formal legal registration of an opposition political party. Over the next eighteen months, however, it was systematically crushed. Known members of the CDP were summarily arrested and detained, and though most were held for relatively brief periods, at least thirty-four of them were sentenced to prison terms of up to thirteen years on charges of attempted subversion. At least four others fled into exile abroad. Others, who remain in China but are not in prison, live under close police surveillance and have ceased to be openly active.

The CDP called for multiparty democracy in China and respect for human rights. Chinese leaders saw it as a group that aimed to undermine the basic principles and the monopoly of power of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). CDP members were veteran dissidents, many of them former political prisoners. They were skilled in modern communication techniques and strategic in their timing of statements and actions. They were determined to test the Chinese government's stated commitment to improved respect for human rights and willing to face the consequences of doing so.

Three of the group's founders, Wang Youcai, Wang Donghai and Lin Hui, seized the opportunity presented by U.S. President Bill Clinton's state visit to China in June 1998 to announce the formation of the CDP's first local preparatory committee in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. Then, taking advantage of the relatively relaxed political atmosphere at the time, CDP activists sought to register preparatory committees in other provinces. And as the government announced that China would sign the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), they cited that treaty's provisions on freedom of association and expression as evidence of their right to organize.

At first, local authorities to whom CDP members applied to register their preparatory committees appear to have been uncertain how to react. But when the CDP announced that it planned to create a national structure, the central government, led by National People's Congress chairman Li Peng and President Jiang Zemin, denounced the fledgling party, and CDP leaders were arrested and imprisoned. The first wave of arrests took place in November and December 1998, but neither it nor a subsequent series of arrests in May 1999 deterred the remaining CDP members from continuing their efforts to build the party, issue public statements, or hold discussion groups. It was only in late 1999 that the CDP was effectively silenced.

CDP members stressed during their efforts to obtain legal recognition that they were seeking to do so in accordance with existing laws. In the absence of regulations specifically governing the registration of political parties, they sought to register with the relevant provincial branches of the Civil Affairs Ministry in view of its responsibility for the registration of "social groups." They also invoked the Chinese constitution and official regulations on social groups issued in October 1989 and pointed to China's stated commitment to the rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Finally, when all else had failed, they tried to go directly to the State Council, China's equivalent of an executive cabinet, to register. The end result, however, was that the embryonic party was declared an "illegal organization."

The main regulation used to try and sentence CDP leaders was Article 105 of the 1997 Penal Code, which penalizes "those involved in organizing, scheming or acting to subvert the political power of the state and overthrow the socialist system." Since the offense of "counterrevolution" was dropped from the 1997 Penal Code, Article 105 has become one of the charges used by the government to punish peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, association, and assembly."

Document(s): Open document

01.09.2000 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Report documenting the Chinese government's suppression of the China Democracy Party ("Nipped In The Bud:The Suppression Of The China Democracy Party") [#19518],  [ID 3577]

"This report documents the Chinese government's reaction to the efforts of a small number of democracy activists in 1998 and 1999 to take the first steps toward establishing a legal opposition party. It illustrates how tightly the government continues to control and restrict freedom of expression and association, despite China's signing of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and public assurances by its leaders of their concern for human rights. It shows that, while China has undergone phenomenal economic and social transformation over the last two decades, there has been no significant change in the government's policy toward any organization which overtly challenges the Communist Party's control: suppression.

The China Democracy Party (CDP), a loosely linked group of political activists, operating nationwide, emerged in mid-1998. It was significant because it was the first time since the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 that an attempt was made to obtain the formal legal registration of an opposition political party. Over the next eighteen months, however, it was systematically crushed. Known members of the CDP were summarily arrested and detained, and though most were held for relatively brief periods, at least thirty-four of them were sentenced to prison terms of up to thirteen years on charges of attempted subversion. At least four others fled into exile abroad. Others, who remain in China but are not in prison, live under close police surveillance and have ceased to be openly active.

The CDP called for multiparty democracy in China and respect for human rights. Chinese leaders saw it as a group that aimed to undermine the basic principles and the monopoly of power of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). CDP members were veteran dissidents, many of them former political prisoners. They were skilled in modern communication techniques and strategic in their timing of statements and actions. They were determined to test the Chinese government's stated commitment to improved respect for human rights and willing to face the consequences of doing so.

Three of the group's founders, Wang Youcai, Wang Donghai and Lin Hui, seized the opportunity presented by U.S. President Bill Clinton's state visit to China in June 1998 to announce the formation of the CDP's first local preparatory committee in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. Then, taking advantage of the relatively relaxed political atmosphere at the time, CDP activists sought to register preparatory committees in other provinces. And as the government announced that China would sign the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), they cited that treaty's provisions on freedom of association and expression as evidence of their right to organize.

At first, local authorities to whom CDP members applied to register their preparatory committees appear to have been uncertain how to react. But when the CDP announced that it planned to create a national structure, the central government, led by National People's Congress chairman Li Peng and President Jiang Zemin, denounced the fledgling party, and CDP leaders were arrested and imprisoned. The first wave of arrests took place in November and December 1998, but neither it nor a subsequent series of arrests in May 1999 deterred the remaining CDP members from continuing their efforts to build the party, issue public statements, or hold discussion groups. It was only in late 1999 that the CDP was effectively silenced.

CDP members stressed during their efforts to obtain legal recognition that they were seeking to do so in accordance with existing laws. In the absence of regulations specifically governing the registration of political parties, they sought to register with the relevant provincial branches of the Civil Affairs Ministry in view of its responsibility for the registration of "social groups." They also invoked the Chinese constitution and official regulations on social groups issued in October 1989 and pointed to China's stated commitment to the rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Finally, when all else had failed, they tried to go directly to the State Council, China's equivalent of an executive cabinet, to register. The end result, however, was that the embryonic party was declared an "illegal organization."

The main regulation used to try and sentence CDP leaders was Article 105 of the 1997 Penal Code, which penalizes "those involved in organizing, scheming or acting to subvert the political power of the state and overthrow the socialist system." Since the offense of "counterrevolution" was dropped from the 1997 Penal Code, Article 105 has become one of the charges used by the government to punish peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, association, and assembly."

Document(s): Open document

01.09.2000 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Report documenting the Chinese government's suppression of the China Democracy Party ("Nipped In The Bud:The Suppression Of The China Democracy Party") [#19518],  [ID 3577]

"This report documents the Chinese government's reaction to the efforts of a small number of democracy activists in 1998 and 1999 to take the first steps toward establishing a legal opposition party. It illustrates how tightly the government continues to control and restrict freedom of expression and association, despite China's signing of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and public assurances by its leaders of their concern for human rights. It shows that, while China has undergone phenomenal economic and social transformation over the last two decades, there has been no significant change in the government's policy toward any organization which overtly challenges the Communist Party's control: suppression.

The China Democracy Party (CDP), a loosely linked group of political activists, operating nationwide, emerged in mid-1998. It was significant because it was the first time since the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 that an attempt was made to obtain the formal legal registration of an opposition political party. Over the next eighteen months, however, it was systematically crushed. Known members of the CDP were summarily arrested and detained, and though most were held for relatively brief periods, at least thirty-four of them were sentenced to prison terms of up to thirteen years on charges of attempted subversion. At least four others fled into exile abroad. Others, who remain in China but are not in prison, live under close police surveillance and have ceased to be openly active.

The CDP called for multiparty democracy in China and respect for human rights. Chinese leaders saw it as a group that aimed to undermine the basic principles and the monopoly of power of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). CDP members were veteran dissidents, many of them former political prisoners. They were skilled in modern communication techniques and strategic in their timing of statements and actions. They were determined to test the Chinese government's stated commitment to improved respect for human rights and willing to face the consequences of doing so.

Three of the group's founders, Wang Youcai, Wang Donghai and Lin Hui, seized the opportunity presented by U.S. President Bill Clinton's state visit to China in June 1998 to announce the formation of the CDP's first local preparatory committee in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. Then, taking advantage of the relatively relaxed political atmosphere at the time, CDP activists sought to register preparatory committees in other provinces. And as the government announced that China would sign the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), they cited that treaty's provisions on freedom of association and expression as evidence of their right to organize.

At first, local authorities to whom CDP members applied to register their preparatory committees appear to have been uncertain how to react. But when the CDP announced that it planned to create a national structure, the central government, led by National People's Congress chairman Li Peng and President Jiang Zemin, denounced the fledgling party, and CDP leaders were arrested and imprisoned. The first wave of arrests took place in November and December 1998, but neither it nor a subsequent series of arrests in May 1999 deterred the remaining CDP members from continuing their efforts to build the party, issue public statements, or hold discussion groups. It was only in late 1999 that the CDP was effectively silenced.

CDP members stressed during their efforts to obtain legal recognition that they were seeking to do so in accordance with existing laws. In the absence of regulations specifically governing the registration of political parties, they sought to register with the relevant provincial branches of the Civil Affairs Ministry in view of its responsibility for the registration of "social groups." They also invoked the Chinese constitution and official regulations on social groups issued in October 1989 and pointed to China's stated commitment to the rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Finally, when all else had failed, they tried to go directly to the State Council, China's equivalent of an executive cabinet, to register. The end result, however, was that the embryonic party was declared an "illegal organization."

The main regulation used to try and sentence CDP leaders was Article 105 of the 1997 Penal Code, which penalizes "those involved in organizing, scheming or acting to subvert the political power of the state and overthrow the socialist system." Since the offense of "counterrevolution" was dropped from the 1997 Penal Code, Article 105 has become one of the charges used by the government to punish peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, association, and assembly."

Document(s): Open document

01.09.2000 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Report documenting the Chinese government's suppression of the China Democracy Party ("Nipped In The Bud:The Suppression Of The China Democracy Party") [#19518],  [ID 3577]

"This report documents the Chinese government's reaction to the efforts of a small number of democracy activists in 1998 and 1999 to take the first steps toward establishing a legal opposition party. It illustrates how tightly the government continues to control and restrict freedom of expression and association, despite China's signing of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and public assurances by its leaders of their concern for human rights. It shows that, while China has undergone phenomenal economic and social transformation over the last two decades, there has been no significant change in the government's policy toward any organization which overtly challenges the Communist Party's control: suppression.

The China Democracy Party (CDP), a loosely linked group of political activists, operating nationwide, emerged in mid-1998. It was significant because it was the first time since the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 that an attempt was made to obtain the formal legal registration of an opposition political party. Over the next eighteen months, however, it was systematically crushed. Known members of the CDP were summarily arrested and detained, and though most were held for relatively brief periods, at least thirty-four of them were sentenced to prison terms of up to thirteen years on charges of attempted subversion. At least four others fled into exile abroad. Others, who remain in China but are not in prison, live under close police surveillance and have ceased to be openly active.

The CDP called for multiparty democracy in China and respect for human rights. Chinese leaders saw it as a group that aimed to undermine the basic principles and the monopoly of power of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). CDP members were veteran dissidents, many of them former political prisoners. They were skilled in modern communication techniques and strategic in their timing of statements and actions. They were determined to test the Chinese government's stated commitment to improved respect for human rights and willing to face the consequences of doing so.

Three of the group's founders, Wang Youcai, Wang Donghai and Lin Hui, seized the opportunity presented by U.S. President Bill Clinton's state visit to China in June 1998 to announce the formation of the CDP's first local preparatory committee in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. Then, taking advantage of the relatively relaxed political atmosphere at the time, CDP activists sought to register preparatory committees in other provinces. And as the government announced that China would sign the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), they cited that treaty's provisions on freedom of association and expression as evidence of their right to organize.

At first, local authorities to whom CDP members applied to register their preparatory committees appear to have been uncertain how to react. But when the CDP announced that it planned to create a national structure, the central government, led by National People's Congress chairman Li Peng and President Jiang Zemin, denounced the fledgling party, and CDP leaders were arrested and imprisoned. The first wave of arrests took place in November and December 1998, but neither it nor a subsequent series of arrests in May 1999 deterred the remaining CDP members from continuing their efforts to build the party, issue public statements, or hold discussion groups. It was only in late 1999 that the CDP was effectively silenced.

CDP members stressed during their efforts to obtain legal recognition that they were seeking to do so in accordance with existing laws. In the absence of regulations specifically governing the registration of political parties, they sought to register with the relevant provincial branches of the Civil Affairs Ministry in view of its responsibility for the registration of "social groups." They also invoked the Chinese constitution and official regulations on social groups issued in October 1989 and pointed to China's stated commitment to the rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Finally, when all else had failed, they tried to go directly to the State Council, China's equivalent of an executive cabinet, to register. The end result, however, was that the embryonic party was declared an "illegal organization."

The main regulation used to try and sentence CDP leaders was Article 105 of the 1997 Penal Code, which penalizes "those involved in organizing, scheming or acting to subvert the political power of the state and overthrow the socialist system." Since the offense of "counterrevolution" was dropped from the 1997 Penal Code, Article 105 has become one of the charges used by the government to punish peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, association, and assembly."

Document(s): Open document

01.09.2000 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Report documenting the Chinese government's suppression of the China Democracy Party ("Nipped In The Bud:The Suppression Of The China Democracy Party") [#19518],  [ID 3577]

"This report documents the Chinese government's reaction to the efforts of a small number of democracy activists in 1998 and 1999 to take the first steps toward establishing a legal opposition party. It illustrates how tightly the government continues to control and restrict freedom of expression and association, despite China's signing of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and public assurances by its leaders of their concern for human rights. It shows that, while China has undergone phenomenal economic and social transformation over the last two decades, there has been no significant change in the government's policy toward any organization which overtly challenges the Communist Party's control: suppression.

The China Democracy Party (CDP), a loosely linked group of political activists, operating nationwide, emerged in mid-1998. It was significant because it was the first time since the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 that an attempt was made to obtain the formal legal registration of an opposition political party. Over the next eighteen months, however, it was systematically crushed. Known members of the CDP were summarily arrested and detained, and though most were held for relatively brief periods, at least thirty-four of them were sentenced to prison terms of up to thirteen years on charges of attempted subversion. At least four others fled into exile abroad. Others, who remain in China but are not in prison, live under close police surveillance and have ceased to be openly active.

The CDP called for multiparty democracy in China and respect for human rights. Chinese leaders saw it as a group that aimed to undermine the basic principles and the monopoly of power of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). CDP members were veteran dissidents, many of them former political prisoners. They were skilled in modern communication techniques and strategic in their timing of statements and actions. They were determined to test the Chinese government's stated commitment to improved respect for human rights and willing to face the consequences of doing so.

Three of the group's founders, Wang Youcai, Wang Donghai and Lin Hui, seized the opportunity presented by U.S. President Bill Clinton's state visit to China in June 1998 to announce the formation of the CDP's first local preparatory committee in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. Then, taking advantage of the relatively relaxed political atmosphere at the time, CDP activists sought to register preparatory committees in other provinces. And as the government announced that China would sign the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), they cited that treaty's provisions on freedom of association and expression as evidence of their right to organize.

At first, local authorities to whom CDP members applied to register their preparatory committees appear to have been uncertain how to react. But when the CDP announced that it planned to create a national structure, the central government, led by National People's Congress chairman Li Peng and President Jiang Zemin, denounced the fledgling party, and CDP leaders were arrested and imprisoned. The first wave of arrests took place in November and December 1998, but neither it nor a subsequent series of arrests in May 1999 deterred the remaining CDP members from continuing their efforts to build the party, issue public statements, or hold discussion groups. It was only in late 1999 that the CDP was effectively silenced.

CDP members stressed during their efforts to obtain legal recognition that they were seeking to do so in accordance with existing laws. In the absence of regulations specifically governing the registration of political parties, they sought to register with the relevant provincial branches of the Civil Affairs Ministry in view of its responsibility for the registration of "social groups." They also invoked the Chinese constitution and official regulations on social groups issued in October 1989 and pointed to China's stated commitment to the rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Finally, when all else had failed, they tried to go directly to the State Council, China's equivalent of an executive cabinet, to register. The end result, however, was that the embryonic party was declared an "illegal organization."

The main regulation used to try and sentence CDP leaders was Article 105 of the 1997 Penal Code, which penalizes "those involved in organizing, scheming or acting to subvert the political power of the state and overthrow the socialist system." Since the offense of "counterrevolution" was dropped from the 1997 Penal Code, Article 105 has become one of the charges used by the government to punish peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, association, and assembly."

Document(s): Open document

01.09.2000 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Report documenting the Chinese government's suppression of the China Democracy Party ("Nipped In The Bud:The Suppression Of The China Democracy Party") [#19518],  [ID 3577]

"This report documents the Chinese government's reaction to the efforts of a small number of democracy activists in 1998 and 1999 to take the first steps toward establishing a legal opposition party. It illustrates how tightly the government continues to control and restrict freedom of expression and association, despite China's signing of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and public assurances by its leaders of their concern for human rights. It shows that, while China has undergone phenomenal economic and social transformation over the last two decades, there has been no significant change in the government's policy toward any organization which overtly challenges the Communist Party's control: suppression.

The China Democracy Party (CDP), a loosely linked group of political activists, operating nationwide, emerged in mid-1998. It was significant because it was the first time since the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949 that an attempt was made to obtain the formal legal registration of an opposition political party. Over the next eighteen months, however, it was systematically crushed. Known members of the CDP were summarily arrested and detained, and though most were held for relatively brief periods, at least thirty-four of them were sentenced to prison terms of up to thirteen years on charges of attempted subversion. At least four others fled into exile abroad. Others, who remain in China but are not in prison, live under close police surveillance and have ceased to be openly active.

The CDP called for multiparty democracy in China and respect for human rights. Chinese leaders saw it as a group that aimed to undermine the basic principles and the monopoly of power of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). CDP members were veteran dissidents, many of them former political prisoners. They were skilled in modern communication techniques and strategic in their timing of statements and actions. They were determined to test the Chinese government's stated commitment to improved respect for human rights and willing to face the consequences of doing so.

Three of the group's founders, Wang Youcai, Wang Donghai and Lin Hui, seized the opportunity presented by U.S. President Bill Clinton's state visit to China in June 1998 to announce the formation of the CDP's first local preparatory committee in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. Then, taking advantage of the relatively relaxed political atmosphere at the time, CDP activists sought to register preparatory committees in other provinces. And as the government announced that China would sign the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), they cited that treaty's provisions on freedom of association and expression as evidence of their right to organize.

At first, local authorities to whom CDP members applied to register their preparatory committees appear to have been uncertain how to react. But when the CDP announced that it planned to create a national structure, the central government, led by National People's Congress chairman Li Peng and President Jiang Zemin, denounced the fledgling party, and CDP leaders were arrested and imprisoned. The first wave of arrests took place in November and December 1998, but neither it nor a subsequent series of arrests in May 1999 deterred the remaining CDP members from continuing their efforts to build the party, issue public statements, or hold discussion groups. It was only in late 1999 that the CDP was effectively silenced.

CDP members stressed during their efforts to obtain legal recognition that they were seeking to do so in accordance with existing laws. In the absence of regulations specifically governing the registration of political parties, they sought to register with the relevant provincial branches of the Civil Affairs Ministry in view of its responsibility for the registration of "social groups." They also invoked the Chinese constitution and official regulations on social groups issued in October 1989 and pointed to China's stated commitment to the rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Finally, when all else had failed, they tried to go directly to the State Council, China's equivalent of an executive cabinet, to register. The end result, however, was that the embryonic party was declared an "illegal organization."

The main regulation used to try and sentence CDP leaders was Article 105 of the 1997 Penal Code, which penalizes "those involved in organizing, scheming or acting to subvert the political power of the state and overthrow the socialist system." Since the offense of "counterrevolution" was dropped from the 1997 Penal Code, Article 105 has become one of the charges used by the government to punish peaceful exercise of the rights to freedom of expression, association, and assembly."

Document(s): Open document