Abstract
BEIJING, Oct 29, 2007 (AFP) -
A Chinese journalist jailed since June in eastern China after reporting
on local corruption has been beaten in jail by police interrogators,
his lawyer said Monday.
Qi Chonghuai said he was beaten repeatedly in August by police interrogating
him on extortion charges that he has pleaded innocent to, his lawyer,
Li Xiongbin, told AFP.
"Police beat Qi on the face nearly 20 times," Li said.
"They told him that they could beat him as much as they liked, and
call it suicide if he died."
Qi, a veteran journalist who once worked for the China Work Safety
Production News, was arrested at his home in Tengzhou, Shandong province,
in late June, but not formally charged until August 20, according
to his wife, Jiao Xia.
"The charges of extortion are unacceptable because he did nothing
but write reports on corruption," Jiao, who has two children with
Qi, told AFP.
Before his arrest, Qi had posted on the Internet many sensitive articles
on displaced peasants and environmental damage.
Many of the essays were published on government-run websites, including
the official Xinhua news agency's site, the lawyer said.
Police at the Tengzhou detention centre refused to comment on the
case when contacted by AFP.
According to the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists,
Qi was originally detained with friend Ma Shiping for allegedly using
false press credentials. Both are awaiting trial for extortion.
The two had worked together in posting essays on the Internet exposing
government corruption as well as China's crackdown on the Falungong
spiritual group, it said.
"Reports that Qi has been badly treated in custody are disturbing,"
said committee director Joel Simon in a statement.
"Journalists should be entitled to fair treatment in the Chinese legal
system."
Although China's central government has strongly condemned corruption
amongst its ranks, journalists and ordinary citizens who expose local
graft often end up in jail.
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Document AFPR000020071029e3at002pk
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