A once-outspoken Chinese lawyer convicted on subversion charges said he was subjected to harsh treatment by authorities and confessed in order to protect his family, according to recently released letters and a taped telephone conversation.
The letters and recording of Gao Zhisheng (高智晟), released by a fellow activist, offer the most detailed account of his treatment since the fiery critic of the Communist government was arrested in August last year, convicted and held in a type of house arrest.
In one letter, Gao says he was once forced to sit in an iron chair for 109 hours straight. At other times during his five-month detention, he said he was handcuffed or forced to sit cross-legged for hundreds of hours and had strong lights shone on him.
In another letter and in the phone conversation, Gao described the harassment his wife and two children received from security agents and the mental anguish that caused him. He wrote that his family was being deprived of proper lives.
"Their spirits are being broken," he said.
He also said he agreed to a public confession in exchange for 5,000 yuan (US$650) to give to his family for living expenses.
Police did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Gao's descriptions of mistreatment are consistent with those of criminal suspects and other political dissidents.
Gao could not be reached for comment. His telephone numbers have been disconnected.
Hu Jia (胡佳), the activist who released to journalists Gao's letters and the recorded telephone conversation, said Gao was coming to terms with having confessed to subversion.
"He compromised himself to save his wife, son, daughter and other family members who were being constantly harassed or threatened by security agents," Hu said in a telephone interview yesterday.
"One person who saw him immediately after he was released from prison saw bruises covering Gao's legs from the beatings he received," he said.
Gao became a prominent critic of the government's civil rights lapses between 2002 and last year, taking on cases involving property-rights violations and religious persecution. He was detained last August during a crackdown on activist Chinese lawyers.
He was convicted in December in a one-day trial based on nine articles posted on Web sites abroad, the official Xinhua news agency reported at that time.
In the first accounting of the charges against Gao, Xinhua said the articles "defamed and made rumors about China's current government and social system, conspiring to topple the regime."
Gao was sentenced to three years in prison but the sentence was suspended. Under the terms of his release, he was allowed to go home but could be returned to prison if he breaks the law during the next five years.
Earlier this month, Hu said he taped a conversation with Gao, who used a temporary mobile phone and number to contact him.
In the recording, which Hu released to journalists, Gao said there were at least 100 plainclothes agents surrounding his home and that his telephone had been cut off.
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