Chinese activist on trial for trying to visit hospital while under house arrest

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/11/chinese-activist-trial-hospital-house-arrest-li-biyun

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A Chinese activist is standing trial for obstructing official business after a confrontation with security officers who tried to stop her seeking medical treatment, her lawyer and sister have said.

Li Biyun, 46, who was in a wheelchair for the court hearing in Foshan, southern China, on Friday, is pleading not guilty to the charge. She says guards keeping her under house arrest last year refused to let her visit hospital when she fell ill and stopped her when she tried to go anyway.

Human rights groups say activists are frequently denied medical treatment while under house arrest or in custody.

The prosecution says Li brandished a knife in the incident. Her lawyers say she was seeking to defend herself because she was weak, ill and outnumbered. They complain that she had been under pressure due to her lengthy house arrest.

Police dropped the charges last July but then reopened the case months later. Li believes that decision was related to her petitioning, her lawyer Liu Hao said.

Her trial was scheduled for May but adjourned due to her ill health, as she was coughing up blood.

Li's sister, Li Caiyun, said she was not optimistic about the case, fearing that authorities wanted to make an example of the activist to send a message to others. "The Shunde court has made up their mind on my sister's case," she said.

Diplomats who requested permission to attend the hearing were refused. A court official in Shunde declined to comment on the case, saying he could only accept queries presented in person.

Li was accused of pulling a knife on officials in a previous case involving a dispute over grassroots elections in 2011, when she tried to stand as an independent candidate but was disqualified. She said then that she had carried a knife in self-defence after experiencing repeated harassment and physical abuse.

She was tried for "undermining elections" but released on bail before a verdict was issued. She was previously jailed for 10 months on a charge of obstructing official business.

Li's previous lawyers complained about the lack of medical treatment during past detentions, given her long-term health problems. They said she had been fainting repeatedly but was given only vitamins.

Maya Wang, of Human Rights Watch, said: "There has been a pattern of denying access to medical care for activists. In a lot of cases these activists have serious health conditions."

That applied to people held under house arrest – such as Hu Jia and Feng Zhenghu – as well as those detained by police, she noted.

This year, activist Cao Shunli died within days of her release from custody. Supporters said she should have been released much earlier given the deterioration in her health, and claimed she was repeatedly denied treatment while held.

China's foreign ministry said reports on Cao's death were mistaken, adding that she had received "conscientious" treatment and that her rights had been protected.