Chinese Rights Lawyer Released After 5 Years Behind Bars, Vows to Continue to ‘Be Brave’

The Chinese Supreme People's Court building in Beijing in a file photo. STR/AFP/Getty Images

Chinese human rights lawyer Qin Yongpei has been released after serving his full prison term of five years, according to an international human rights group.

“On 31 October 2024, human rights lawyer Qin Yongpei completed a five-year sentence, was released from prison, and returned to his home in Nanning, Guangxi Province,” says Front Line Defenders, an organization based in Dublin, Ireland, dedicated to protecting and supporting human rights defenders worldwide.

Qin took to social media platform X on Nov. 1, confirming his freedom.

“Hi everyone, I’m Qin Yongpei. I regained my freedom at 6 a.m. today and returned to Nanning by 8:30 a.m.,” he wrote in Chinese.

He also expressed gratitude for the support he received during his incarceration.

“Freedom is extremely precious, but there are things more important than freedom itself,” he wrote. “If I were to give up speaking the truth out of fear of losing freedom, then I would no longer be myself.”

Fighting for Human Rights, Rule of Law

The 55-year-old Chinese lawyer is known for his fearless rights advocacy and defiance of oppressive state actions by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

He is a Christian and the founder and director of the Guangxi Baijuming Law Firm, as well as one of the initiators of the “China Post-Lawyers Club” to provide assistance to lawyers who have been disbarred by the Chinese authorities for defending human rights.

“Anyone with basic legal knowledge knows that the purpose of a state’s existence is to protect the human rights of its citizens. Human rights issues are the most significant political matters for any country!” Qin wrote on X on Nov. 1.

Qin has handled and represented numerous human rights cases in his legal career of over a decade. Known for his outspoken nature in the legal community, he once posted criticism of the chief of the municipal Public Security Bureau of Nanning on a Chinese social media platform. On another occasion, he publicly offered a reward for evidence of offenses conducted by Fu Zhenghua, the then Minister of Justice and vice-Minster of Public Security. This drew the CCP’s ire and relentless retaliation. Qin’s legal license was revoked and his law firm was disbanded by the local authorities in May 2018.

He was detained in October 2019 by local police in Guangxi Province, according to Front Line Defenders. In March 2023, the Nanning Municipal Intermediate Court in Guangxi convicted Qin of “incitement of subversion to State power” and sentenced him to five years in prison, to be followed by three years of “deprivation of political rights.”

‘Truly Brave Chinese’

Once free, Qin continued to express his stance on the rule of law and human rights on social media and to show his support for and solidarity with his fellow lawyers.

He has now made over 40 posts on X since Nov. 1, in which he praises his fellow lawyers for their bravery, including the well-known rights lawyers Jiang Tianyong, Bao Longjun, Wang Yu, Xie Yang, Lu Siwei, Li Jinxing, Yu Wensheng, Chen Jiangang, Wang Quanzhang, and Zhu Shengwu. Qin says that these lawyers have been at the forefront of the fight for rule of law and that they are “truly brave Chinese.”

Qin mentioned in one post that he wants to be a defending lawyer for Xie Yang. He wrote in another post that he wants to find a way to help Lu Siwei to get out of China, as he knows Lu is innocent and has a U.S. visa.

Lu is a victim of the Chinese regime’s transnational repression. He was arrested on July 28, 2023, in Laos en route to Thailand to board a flight to the United States to reunite with his wife and daughter.

While expressing his appreciation for the support he had received during the five years behind bars, Qin said he will continue to “be a brave Chinese,” although he said he understands “the danger of speaking the truth.”

“No matter the cost, I still choose to be the person I was five years ago,” he wrote.

He called on overseas Chinese for support.

“The rule of law in China needs the attention and support of overseas Chinese communities. Without the rule of law, Chinese citizens cannot truly be safe!” Qin wrote.

Despite China’s current situation, Qin’s vision for his country remains resolute: a nation where rule of law and human rights prevail.

“The world is becoming increasingly interconnected,” he wrote. “China’s future will certainly see the realization of true rule of law.”

Lai Jianping, a former Beijing lawyer and chairman of the Federation for a Democratic China in Canada, regards Qin as a “role model for Chinese lawyers and Chinese citizens.”

Lai told The Epoch Times on Nov. 5 that Qin was fully aware that he would inevitably face persecution from the CCP, considering what had happened to other human rights lawyers in China. Gao Zhisheng, one of China’s most renowned human rights lawyers, was kidnapped from his home in Shaanxi province on Aug. 13, 2017. It has been more than seven years since then, and there has not been any information about Gao’s whereabouts.

“Qin courageously upholds the dignity of the rule of law through dedication, professional ethics, and legal advocacy, and confronts the CCP’s threat and oppression without fear,” Lai said.

Lai noted that even after enduring imprisonment, Qin’s resolve remains unbroken. He said Qin has emerged more determined, immediately re-engaging in the fight for human rights upon his release from prison.

“This is truly commendable,” Lai said.

He believes Qin’s bravery will “encourage Chinese people to step forward and stand up against the CCP’s authoritarian rule.”

Luo Ya contributed to this report.