On 17 September 2021, The Rights Practice joins a coalition of 44 human rights NGOs to call on the Chinese authorities to release Zhang Zhan, human rights defender, journalist, and former lawyer. In February 2020, Zhang Zhan had travelled to Wuhan to report on the first days of the Covid-19 pandemic in the city of Wuhan. In December 2020, she was convicted of ‘picking quarrels and provoking trouble’ and sentenced to four years in prison, in a proceeding that did not meet international fair trial standards. She is suffering from a critical health condition and may die soon if she remains in detention. We urge the authorities to allow Zhang Zhan access to see her family and release her before it is too late.

Read the full letter here.