U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
April 20, 2020
The United States calls on the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to allow human rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang’s freedom of movement, including the ability to join his family in Beijing, now that he has been released after five years of unjust detention. We remain very concerned about reports of his declining physical and mental health, and of his mistreatment in prison. Wang was detained as part of the PRC’s nationwide roundup of more than 300 human rights lawyers and legal associates beginning July 9, 2015.
We continue to call for the release of all of those unjustly detained, such as Li Yuhan and Yu Wensheng, as well as other Chinese citizens who are in detention simply for exercising their human rights and fundamental freedoms in pursuit of a more equitable and just society, governed by the rule of law. We remain concerned by the PRC’s weak rule of law, arbitrary detentions, torture in custody, and continued violations and abuses of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of individuals inside its borders. We urge the PRC to uphold its international human rights commitments and promises made in its own constitution.