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Chinese police detain fugitive rights activist Xu Zhiyong during ‘coronavirus check’
- Xu found at home of Guangzhou lawyer on the weekend, two months after going into hiding
- Homes of other friends searched as authorities tighten restrictions to contain the spread of Covid-19
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A Chinese rights activist in hiding since December was detained in the southern city of Guangzhou after police mounted “coronavirus prevention checks” on the homes of friends and sympathisers, according to other activists.
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Xu Zhiyong, 47, had been in hiding since attending a gathering in Xiamen, in the southeastern province of Fujian, to discuss “democratic transition in China”.
Four other activists – Ding Jiaxi, Dai Zhenya, Zhang Zhongshun, Li Yingjun – were detained soon after the gathering without access to lawyers.
“Xu had been hiding and meeting friends in different cities, continuing his work of developing civil movements. But he became stuck as quarantine controls across the country against the coronavirus outbreak were stepped up,” another activist said, referring to heightened restrictions to stop the spread of Covid-19.
Xu was detained at the home of Yang Bin, a Guangzhou-based lawyer and a former prosecutor, during a police “coronavirus check”.
Yang confirmed that she, her husband, their son and Xu were taken away by police together and all but Xu were released on Sunday evening after being questioned by police.
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