The wife of a jailed human rights lawyer in China appealed to authorities to approve a prison transfer and ensure medical treatment for her husband who reportedly suffered injuries.
Yu Wensheng, 54, was sentenced to four years in prison in June 2020 for allegedly inciting subversion of state power after circulating a letter calling for constitutional reforms.
He has been in detention since January 2018, more than two years before his conviction.
Yu’s wife, Xu Yan, was able to talk with him via video conference last week after which Xu posted a video on Twitter saying that her husband had been beaten, reported Hong Kong media Apple Daily.
She said her husband is detained in a facility in Nanjing that houses inmates over 65 years old who do not exercise. Yu said the arrangement constitutes mistreatment.
“Up to now, Yu Wensheng has not been allowed to buy anything, has not been provided with a pen and paper, and his right to read [and he] is also not well looked after,” Xu wrote.
“I hope that these rights can be ensured as quickly as possible.”
Xu said the authorities had taken Yu to hospital, where an orthopedist said that Yu’s hands were trembling because of an injury that had damaged his nerves.
The wife asked prison authorities to approve Yu’s application for hospital treatment, medical parole, monthly visitation rights, and a transfer.
Yu, a Chinese human rights lawyer from Beijing, worked on several high-profile human rights cases prior to his detention including fellow human rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang and Falun Gong practitioners, among others.
He was also previously detained for 99 days in 2014 after voicing his support for pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. He told rights group Amnesty International that he was tortured while in detention.
Yu also publicly advocated for constitutional changes and a revision of the legal system, namely the abolition of the death penalty and the introduction of a multi-party system.
Yu was named a Martin Ennals Award Laureate 2021 earlier this year in honor of his rights work. For more on Yu watch this Martin Ennals Foundation video below based on a letter by Xu to her imprisoned husband.
