Shen Youlian
Cases- Case status
- Unresolved
- Location of case in SG report
- 2021-025-001
- Relevant SG report
- Year of the report
- 2021
- From Country
- Country Geolocation
Latitude: 35.86166
Longitude: 104.195397
- Country Geolocation (linked Cases)
- China
- From Region
- Type of record
- Named individual
- Gender
- Male
- Was the victim a foreign national?
- No
- Was the victim a minor?
- No
- Individual's/organization's activity
a human rights defender in Guizhou province in China; efforts to popularize the contents of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Guizhou.
- Type of rights defended
- Civil/political rights
- Was the victim a civil servant or member of the security forces or of the judiciary?
- No
- Reported trigger of reprisal
On 28 February 2021, Mr. Shen Youlian posted an open letter online that he had written to the High Commissioner for Human Rights. In the letter, Shen Youlian referred to his efforts to popularize the contents of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Guizhou. He stated that from 2005 onwards, he and other defenders in Guizhou had planned events for Human Rights Day, but that Chinese authorities had consistently suppressed their activism. The letter also described his experiences being detained by authorities in 2011, 2016, and 2019 for the planning of Human Rights Days events. He urged the High Commissioner to ask the Government to release his fellow activist, Mr. Chen Xi, who has been serving a 10-year imprisonment sentence since November 2011.
- Engagement with UN body
- UN (Dep.) High Commissioner on Human Rights
- Dates of engagement
- 28 February 2021
- Type of attempted engagement
- Submission of information to UN
- Dates of mentioned reprisals
- 26 March 2021
- Location of mentioned reprisals
- Guizhou, China
- Reprisal information
administratively detained for ten days
- Types of reprisals suffered
- Detention/Imprisonment: Detention/Imprisonment - General
- Alleged/likely perpetrators
- State actors
- Was the reprisal based on new legislation?
- No
- Does the report make general comment about country’s environment for engagement with UN?
- Yes
- Government response dates
- 20 August 2021
- Government response content
Regarding Mr. Shen Youlian, male, age 68, from Guiyang City, Guizhou Province, a retired worker of the Guiyang Flour Company, the Government stated that the Chinese judiciary has not taken any compulsory measure against him and there is no such a thing as “detention” or “suppression”.
- Was the case raised by a State at the UN?
- No
- Is the country cited for a "pattern of reprisal" in the context of this case?
- No
- Is a pattern of reprisals mentioned otherwise in the context of this case?
- No
- Does the report cite "self-censorship" as an issue in the context of this case?
- No
- How many times has the case been followed up in subsequent SG reports?
- 2
- In which SG report was this case followed up on? 0
- 2022
- Follow up information provided in SG report 0
- The case of Mr. Shen Youlian, human rights defender in Guizhou province, was included in the 2021 report of the Secretary-General on allegations that he had been administratively detained for 10 days following his posting of an open online letter to the High Commissioner. In the letter, Mr. Shen Youlian described his efforts to popularize the content of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, organize events for Human Rights Day since 2005 together with other defenders, the alleged suppression of their activism and his experience of detention in 2011, 2016 and 2019 for the planning of Human Rights Day events.
- According to information received by OHCHR, during the reporting period, authorities subjected Mr. Shen Youlian to house arrest and surveillance for a total of 27 days, including on 4 June, 9 July and Human Rights Day 2021. On 16 March 2022, public security officers and neighbourhood committee members reportedly arrived at Mr. Shen Youlian’s home, informed him he was suspected of “illegally engaging in activities in the name of an organization” based on an essay he had written in 2021 about human rights. Mr. Shen Youlian’s residence was searched and his computer, hard drive, and phone confiscated. Mr. Shen Youlian was allegedly then taken to the Case Investigation Center of the Huaxi District Public Security Branch where he was asked to change into a jail uniform and was held overnight for interrogation. It was reported to OHCHR that Mr. Shen Youlian was questioned about his activities, asked to match several online usernames with the legal names of several people he had met online and threatened with detention for 10 days. Mr. Shen Youlian was released the next morning and on 22 March 2022 he reportedly filed a complaint with the police inspector about the search of his residence and his interrogation. A week later, on 29 March 2022, public security officials from the State Security division allegedly went to his home and threatened to punish him for filing his complaint.
- Followup Trends 0
- Deterioration/further reprisals
- Did the government respond? 0
- Yes
- In which SG report was this case followed up on? 1
- 2023
- Follow up information provided in SG report 1
- The case of Mr. Shen Youlian, human rights defender in Guizhou province, was included in the 2021 and 2022 report of the Secretary-General41 on allegations that he had been administratively detained for 10 days following his posting of an open online letter to the High Commissioner. According to information received by OHCHR, on 10 December 2022, Mr. Shen Youlian was reportedly forced by Guiyang State security officials to leave his town for three days, and hence he was allegedly prevented from publicly observing Human Rights Day. Reportedly, he was also closely monitored by police on 3 March 2023, during the time the National People’s congress was in session.
- Regarding the situation of Mr. Shen Youlian and Ms. Li Qiaochu, the Government reiterated its reply to last year’s report (A/HRC/51/47, Annex II, para. 51) recalling that the Chinese judicial authorities have not implemented any coercive measures against Mr. ShenYoulian. With regard to Ms. Li Qiaochu, indicted for the crime of inciting the subversion of State power, it noted that the case was currently pending with the Intermediate People’s Court of Linyi city.
- Followup Trends 1
- Deterioration/further reprisals
- Did the government respond? 1
- Yes