Take Action for Li Yuhan 为李昱函采取行动

On 31 October 2017, family of disappeared human rights lawyer Li Yuhan (李昱函) learned, following a call to an informal police contact, that she is currently under criminal detention in Shenyang City, Liaoning Province. On 9 October 2017, the human rights defender sent a text message to her younger brother reporting that she was being “taken away” by Shenyang police. She has been held in incommunicado detention since.

Li Yuhan is a Beijing-based human rights lawyer and advocate for victims of human rights violations, known to many in China’s human rights community as “big sister”, a reference to both her age and her compassionate demeanour. In her capacity as a human rights lawyer, Li Yuhan has represented sensitive cases on freedom of belief and access to government information. In 2015, during China’s “709” crackdown on human rights lawyers, Li Yuhan defended Wang Yu, a fellow human rights lawyer who was targeted as one of the central victims of the crackdown. Wang Yu was officially released on bail on 22 July 2016 and allowed to return home on 20 July 2017.

Despite regulations under Chinese law that family members must be notified within 24 hours of an individual’s arrest, Li Yuhan’s family have still received no official communication from Shenyang police. On 31 October 2017, Li Wensheng learned from an informal phone call to a police officer contact from Shenyang City, Heping Branch, that Li Yuhan had been placed under criminal detention at the Shenyang No. 1 Detention Centre, “most likely” on charges of “picking quarrels and provoking troubles”. The family has not been allowed any communication with Li Yuhan. On 6 November 2017, Li Yuhan’s lawyer was denied a meeting with his client by facility staff of the Shenyang No. 1 Detention Centre, in further violation of Li Yuhan’s legal rights.

Due to her work defending sensitive cases and drawing attention to government and police wrongdoing, Li Yuhan has frequently been the target of acts of retaliation by Chinese authorities including threats to her family, verbal harassment, and violent, physical assault. Associates of Li Yuhan believe that Shenyang authorities have in this case used nation-wide “stability” measures in the lead-up to China’s 19th Party Congress as a pretext for targeting Li Yuhan and depriving her of her liberty.

I call on Chinese authorities to drop any charges against Li Yuhan and to end her illegal incommunicado detention, as I believe that these acts are solely attempts to deter the defender’s peaceful work as a human rights lawyer.

I urge the authorities in China to:

1. Drop any charges against Li Yuhan, restore her liberty and allow her to contact her family and legal representative;

2. Comply with Chinese and international law in upholding Li Yuhan’s procedural rights, including notifying Li Yuhan’s family of her current whereabouts and any criminal charges against her;

3. Take steps to guarantee the health and well-being of Li Yuhan while she is in detention;

4. Guarantee in all circumstances that all human rights defenders in China are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities without fear of reprisals and free of all restrictions.

2017年10月31日，失踪的人权律师李昱函家人致电警方后获悉，目前李昱函在辽宁省沈阳市被刑事拘留。 2017年10月9日，李昱函给她的弟弟发了短信，说她正被沈阳警方“带走”。自那时起，李昱函一直被隔离监禁。

李昱函是北京的人权律师，支持人权受到侵犯的受害者，她是中国的人权界许多人公认的“大姐”，这个称谓既说明她的年龄又反映她富有同情心的言行。作为人权律师，李昱函代理了敏感的信仰自由案件和要求自由获得政府信息的案件。 2015年，当局“709镇压”人权律师，李昱函是人权律师王宇的辩护律师，王宇是这次镇压的主要受害者。2016年7月22日，王宇被正式取保候审，2017年7月20日，王宇被允许回到家中。

尽管中国法律规定公安拘留后必须在24小时内通知家人，但是沈阳警方并未通知李昱函的家人。 2017年10月31日，李昱函家人致电沈阳和平公安分局一位警官后获悉，李昱函在沈阳第一看守所已经被刑事拘留，“极有可能”被指控为“寻衅滋事”。李昱函家人未被许可与李昱函联系。2017年11月6日，沈阳第一看守所拒绝了李昱函的律师会见她，进一步违反了李昱函的合法权利。

由于为敏感案件辩护，关注政府和警方不法行为，李昱函经常被中国当局报复，包括威胁她的家人、语言骚扰、暴力以及人身攻击。李昱函的同事认为，沈阳当局在中共十九大之前，以全国性的“维稳”措施为借口，剥夺了李昱函的自由。

我呼吁中国当局撤销对李昱函的所有指控，结束对李昱函的非法隔离关押，因为我认为这是企图阻止李昱函作为人权律师的和平工作。

我敦促中国当局：

1. 撤销对李昱函的所有指控，恢复李昱函的自由，允许她会见家人和法定代理人;

2.遵守中国法律和国际法律，维护李昱函的程序权利，包括通知李昱函家人她目前的下落以及对她的任何刑事指控;

3.采取措施保证李昱函被羁押期间的身心健康;

4. 保障在任何情况下，中国所有人权捍卫者能够从事其合法的人权活动，免于报复的恐惧，也不受任何限制。