On August 11, Xie Yang, a lawyer who was arrested and tortured in the “709 crackdowns,” a nationwide crackdown on Chinese lawyers and human rights activists in 2015, had his lawyer’s license revoked illegally by Hunan Provincial Department of Justice. On August 15, Hunan Lawyer Association also canceled his membership. At the same time, Xie Yang received threats and intimidation from the local authorities, demanding him not to defend sensitive cases and accept interviews from overseas media. He was threatened with more severe criminal charges if he did not abide by the rules.
On August 11, human rights lawyer Xie Yang’s license was revoked by the Ministry of justice of Hunan Province, over a case he represented before his arrest. His wife, Chen Guiqiu who is now in exile in the U.S., released this news on Twitter, also saying: “Once someone gets targeted by the devils, laws do not even account for a shred of decency.”
