On October 9, the 60-year-old Chinese human rights lawyer Li Yuhan disappeared. Li Yuhan informed her brother that day that the police took her to the Heping Sub-division of the Shenyang City Public Security Bureau. Later it became known that Li Yuhan was arrested for allegedly “picking quarrels and provoking troubles”.
Li Yuhan is a widely respected human rights lawyer with the Beijing Dunxin Law Firm. Li Yuhan is the lawyer of Wang Yu, the human rights lawyer who was arrested on 9 July 2015 and later charged with ‘subverting state power’.
After her disappearance, Li Yuhan’s whereabouts remained unknown for 23 days. Li Yuhan’s family at first did not receive a formal notification of her criminal detention other than being told on 31 October by a prison official that Li Yuhan is detained for “picking quarrels and provoking troubles”. Moreover, Li Yuhan’s lawyers were not allowed to visit her. The authorities finally allowed Li’s lawyers to meet her on 10 November 2017. Furthermore, on 15 November, the family of Li received an official notification that she has been formally arrested for allegedly “picking quarrels and provoking troubles”.
Li Yuhan suffers from a heart disease for which she has been treated in hospital several times. Li Yuhan has been subjected to physical violence and intimidation in the past, resulting in a worsening of her medical condition.
Lawyers for Lawyers is deeply concerned about the situation of human rights lawyer Li Yuhan. We called on the authorities to immediately release her and will continue to monitor her situation closely.
