Human rights defenders Messrs Jiang Tianyong and Teng Biao remain missing following their disappearances on the 16 and 19 February 2011. Jiang Tianyong and Teng Biao are Beijing-based human rights lawyers who have had their licenses to practice law revoked as a result of their human rights work.

Further Information

They have been at the forefront of the rights defence movement in China over the past number of years, and have previously been threatened, harassed and abducted by the Chinese security services. They were the subject of a Front Line Urgent Appeal on 17 February 2011, and a subsequent update on 23 February 2011.

The two were detained on 16 February 2011 following a meeting with a number of other Beijing-based human rights defenders to discuss the ongoing house arrest of human rights lawyer Chen Guangcheng. Teng Biao was originally placed under house arrest, but went missing on 19 February. A third lawyer who had attended the meeting, Mr Tang Jitian, was also disappeared on 19 February and was reportedly returned to his home province of Jilin on 5 March, where he has remained uncontactable and is believed to be under house arrest.

In recent weeks, up to twenty other human rights defenders have been detained and are under criminal investigation on various charges as calls to participate in protests in cities across China have circulated online. These include blogger Mr Ran Yunfei, human rights defender Mr Chen Wei, writer Mr Gu Chuan, and cyber-activists Messrs Zhang Jiannan, Hua Chunhui and Guo Weidong.

Furthermore, Gungzhou-based webmaster of Independent Chinese Pen Centre, Mr Ye Du, has been subjected to residential surveillance since 1 March 2011, and has reportedly been accused of 'inciting subversion of state power'.

Front Line believes that the continued disappearance of Jiang Tianyong and Teng Biao, as well as the aforementioned acts of harassment against Ran Yunfei, Chen Wei, Gu Chuan Zhang Jiannan, Hua Chunhui, Guo Weidong and Ye Du are directly related to their legitimate and peaceful work in defence of human rights. Front Line is gravely concerned for the physical and psychological integrity of Jiang Tianyong and Teng Biao, as it is believed that their continued detention in an undisclosed location constitutes not only a grave transgression of their fundamental human rights but points to a clear risk of torture or ill-treatment.