Lawyer Zhu Shengwu from China was recently accused of making online speeches that “endangered state security”. Zhu has become the first ever lawyer to be forcefully stripped of his practising licence by administrative measure. This was reported by the China Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group on their website.
On 1 november 2016 the Chinese government issued directive 133: “Managment methods on Lawfirms “and directive 134: “Managment methods on Lawyers”. The goal of the directives is to formulate a set of conditions to which lawfirms and lawyers have to abide to in order to get their licence to practise renewed. If the matter is severe enough, a licence can also be revoked. In China it is forbidden to practise law without a license.
According to our information, on 16 September 2017, the Shandong Judicial Department issued a first notification of administrative penalty to lawyer Zhu Shengwu to revoke his licence of practice. Zhu was accused of having posted on Sina microblog “speeches that negate the constitutionally established political system, the fundamental principles and that endanger state security”. He was also allegedly having “seriously damaged the professional image of lawyers by refusing to correct himself but continued with his acts of law-violation despite the many interviews the judicial administration organ had had with him.”
On 10 September, lawyer Zhu requested the Judicial Department to hold a public hearing on the matter, which subsequently took place on 21 September. The decision to revoke the licence was upheld in an official notice dated 22 September 2017.
Read more in the article by the China Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group.
