Pékin2008

In China, there is no freedom of conscience and no freedom of expression

TAO Haidong, is a 51 years old writer belonging to the Uyghur ethnic group. He is a cyber-dissident activist calling for democracy and reforms.

In 1999 already, TAO Haidong had been assigned to a term of three years' re-education through labour for editing a book entitled Imaginings of a New Human Race. In January 2001, after one year and two months, labour officials reportedly released him early as they considered he had been inappropriately assigned to a labour camp. Subsequently, he became openly active on the Internet.

He was arrested on 9 July 2002 at his home in Urumqi, the provincial capital of Xinjiang (North-west China) while in the process of posting articles on the Internet. After being held incommunicado for several months before trial.

The Court reportedly found that TAO Haidong had written three books, which "brazenly defamed and insulted the Party and State leaders". Extracts of these books were said to have been posted on websites based in China and abroad. His books also predicted that China's economy was near collapse and described China as the world's largest base of feudalism.

In the indictment, it is also claimed that TAO was paid US$500 by overseas websites for his articles. These accusations, reportedly repeated in an Urumqi newspaper at that time, are likely to have jeopardised TAO's right to a fair trial and his right to be presumed innocent before being proven guilty.

He was tried in secret and sentenced on 8 January 2003 to seven years' imprisonment by Urumqi Intermediate People's Court for "inciting to overthrow the State power".


The China 2008 Olympics Collective calls for the immediate and unconditional release of TAO Haidong.