Ex-lawyer convicted of subversion

Xie Yang, a former lawyer, was convicted of inciting subversion of State power but exempt from criminal punishment because no great harm was done and he had confessed, according to a court decision announced on Tuesday in Changsha, capital of Hunan province.

Xie, 45, a Hunan native, pleaded guilty during the court hearing and expressed gratitude for the leniency of the Changsha Intermediate People’s Court on Tuesday. He said he wouldn’t appeal.

The court said the exemption from criminal penalties was made considering “his acts hadn’t caused serious harm to society and he confessed his wrongdoings and showed repentance during the investigation and proceedings.”

Xie said in court, “I hope fellow lawyers take me as a warning and do not defy the law.”

The court found Xie had made many statements attacking or defaming China’s government departments, judicial organs and the national legal system since 2012.

He intentionally exaggerated “sensitive cases”, unscrupulously distorted facts and incited others to gather and cause trouble in public areas, according to the court.

In May, 2015, Xie was one of the lawyers representing the family of Xu Chunhe, who was shot dead on May 2 by a police officer at the Qing’an Train Station in Heilongjiang province, the court said.

The man’s death aroused contentious debate online as to why the officer decided to use his firearm. Xie and several other lawyers held up banners and protested in Qing’an as the case made national headlines and incited confrontation between the country and the public.

He was also found to have received three training sessions outside the Chinese mainland — one in South Korea and two in Hong Kong — which helped generate the idea of overthrowing the current administration in his mind, the court ruling said.

Through these acts, Xie attacked and slandered the country’s political system and incited subversion of State power and the socialist system, the court said.

Though constituting the crime of inciting subversion of State power, Xie’s actions didn’t cause severe social harm, the court said.

Xie said during the hearing he wasn’t coerced into a confession nor was he subject to torture and his legitimate rights were fully protected.

Xie said his previous defense lawyer, Jiang Tianyong, had made up the story of his being tortured during the investigation and disseminated the fake information online. In November, Jiang was convicted of inciting subversion of State power and sentenced to two years in prison.

About 40 people, including legislators, political advisers, domestic and overseas journalists and the defendants’ families attended Tuesday’s proceedings.

In a separate development, Wu Gan was found guilty of inciting subversion of State power and sentenced to eight years in prison by Tianjin No 2 Intermediate People’s Court. He was also deprived of his political rights for five years by the court.

The court said he was found to have used the internet to disseminate fake information attacking national governmental departments and the political system, and conducted a series of actions to overturn State power and the socialist system, posing a serious threat to national security and social stability.

He colluded with members of illegal religious groups, netizens and some lawyers to illegally gather in public, spread rumors online and speculate about controversial issues under the guise of protecting human rights, the court said.

I hope fellow lawyers take me as a warning and do not defy the law.” Xie Yang, a former lawyer