On Monday, Chinese authorities were scheduled to free a citizen journalist who had been imprisoned for four years after recording the initial stages of the coronavirus outbreak in 2020 from Wuhan, in the country’s center.
Zhang Zhan, 40, posted first-hand reports from packed hospitals and deserted streets when she traveled to Wuhan in early 2020. Her testimonies provided a grimmer picture of the pandemic than the official story. Zhang Zhan was based in Shanghai.
In May 2020, following several months of reporting, she was taken into custody. According to court records seen by Reuters, she embarked on a hunger strike in late June. At that time, her attorneys claimed, the police had to strap her hands and force-feed her through a tube.
She was found guilty in December 2020 of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” by a Shanghai court and given a four-year prison sentence. Human rights advocates released an indictment in Zhang’s case, which stated that she would be freed on Monday. Zhang Keke, one of her attorneys, told Reuters that he was unable to confirm whether or not she had been freed at this time.
“Zhang Zhan’s relatives and family haven’t yet responded to me,” he stated.
Wang Wenbin, a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, informed reporters he lacked “relevant information” regarding the situation.
Supporter of Zhang Zhan’s release Jane Wang, who is living in the UK, claimed that Zhang’s family was under a lot of pressure from the government and that they were advised not to speak to the media.
The Chinese government’s treatment of several human rights defenders and their families is completely intolerable. They continue to be denied their fundamental rights even after being released from jail, Wang said Reuters.