Zhang Zhan receives second prison sentence
Zhang Zhan (张展), a lawyer turned civil journalist and rights activist was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment for picking quarrels and provoking trouble (PQPT) on September 19, 2025. This marks her second conviction for the same crime, less than two years after her release in May 2024.
Shortly after completing her four-year prison term, Zhang traveled to Gansu in November 2024 to support fellow activist Zhang Pancheng (张盼成), who had finished serving a three-year sentence for PQPT in February 2024 but was detained again in July.
Zhang Zhan was taken into police custody in her hometown of Xianyang, Shaanxi, and later detained in Shanghai before being formally arrested in November 2024.
Zhang’s friend shared a copy of the indictment, which was filed in January 2025. The document revealed that she had been briefly released between September and November 2024 to undergo psychological evaluation.
Zhang’s alleged criminal activity was summarized in a short paragraph in the three-page indictment. The Shanghai Pudong People’s Procuratorate claimed that between June and August 2024, Zhang posted false information on X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube that insulted others and harmed China’s national image. It was alleged that her posts caused serious disruption to public order.
The procuratorate submitted its sentence recommendation at the same time. Under Chinese law, the maximum sentence for PQPT is a fixed term of up to five years. Citing Zhang as a recidivist who committed multiple offenses, the procuratorate recommended a sentence of four to five years.
Chengdu activist inspired by Peng Lifa detained after fanner protest
Mei Shilin (梅世林), a young activist from Chengdu inspired by Peng Lifa (彭立发, also known as the “Bridge Man”), was arrested on July 16, 2025 for PQPT.
On April 15, Mei hung three long banners over a pedestrian bridge near a Chengdu transit station, calling for political reform. He was detained the following day and is currently held at the Chengdu Detention Center.
The lawyer retained by Mei’s family faced difficulties visiting him. The detention center provided a handwritten note, supposedly by Mei, stating that he would only accept representation from a lawyer appointed through the legal aid program.
China cracks down on overseas students after they return
Overseas Chinese students are increasingly coming under scrutiny from Chinese authorities for their activities overseas, both online or offline.
In a statement released by the overseas student group Chinese Youth Stands for Tibet (CYSFT or CYFT), one of its member, Zhang Yadi (张雅笛), has been detained by Changsha state security on charges of inciting splittism—an endangering state security (ESS). Zhang, a student residing in France, was about to begin her graduate studies at SOAS in London.
According to CYSFT’s website, the group is primarily composed of overseas Chinese students and young professionals of Han ethnicity dedicated to promoting Tibetan culture and Tibetan Buddhism. The statement says Zhang is a native of Changsha, Hunan and has contributed articles to the group’s Substack. She was detained while visiting her parents this summer. It is unclear which of her activities abroad drew the attention from state security.
Rights lawyer Jiang Tianyong (江天勇) was reportedly briefly detained on September 16 while meeting Zhang’s mother in Changsha to provide legal advice.
The detention of Zhang occurred around the same time that another overseas Chinese student, Hu Yang (胡洋), was reportedly held incommunicado in Zhengzhou, Henan. According to a post by Hu’s mother, he was taken into custody by police on July 26 at the Shanghai airport for PQPT upon returning from a visit to the Netherlands. Hu was transferred to Zhengzhou and placed in detention. The reason for his detention was not immediately clear. The Twitter account claiming to belong to Hu’s mother later deleted several posts and is now deactivated.
Persecution against returned overseas Chinese, including students, for their online activities has escalated in recent years. In 2020, Luo Daiqing (罗岱青), a student at the University of Minnesota in the US, was detained in July of 2019 upon returning to his hometown of Wuhan, Hubei. He was accused of posting tweets and images that insulted Xi Jinping in 2018 and was sentenced to six months in prison for PQPT in November 2019. In the same year, a Chinese cartoonist Lu Shining (卢世宁) was sentenced to one and a half years for PQPT by a court in Dalian, Liaoning. Luo had lived in Japan for several years prior to his arrest. Police accused him of posting “insulting cartoons” on overseas social media that attacked Chinese people and hurt their feelings. He was released in October 2020 and reportedly returned to Japan in 2022.
Elderly man convicted of cult crimes granted clemency in Hunan
Han Wenhua (韩文华), an 85 years old resident of Shangqiu, Henan, was allowed to temporarily serve his sentence outside of prison in April 2025.
Han was convicted in 2021 by a district court in Shangqiu of using a cult to undermine implementation of law and sentenced to three years. For undisclosed reasons, he was not admitted to Zhengzhou prison until August 2023, when he was already 83 years old. He was scheduled for release in August 2026.
About halfway through his sentence, Zhengzhou Prison submitted a request in March citing Han’s serious illness.
Admitting seniors in their eighties to prison poses practical challenges, as the warden may need to assign other prisoners to assist with daily routines and additional medical needs.
China does not have a formal age limit for admitting prisoners. Prison authorities may allow prisoners over 70 who are seriously ill or physically disabled to temporarily serve sentences outside of prison. However, authorities have shown little leniency toward individuals convicted of ESS crimes.