Chinese Appeal Court Orders Retrial for Human Rights Activist

Chinese civil rights lawyers hailed a rare victory yesterday when an appeal court ruled in favour of a blind peasant activist who exposed forced abortions, sterilisations and other abuses carried out in the name of the state's one-child policy.

The court in Linyi, Shandong province, overturned an earlier ruling against Chen Guangcheng, who was sentenced to four years in prison after a trial marred by the detention of his lawyers, restrictions on journalists and the house arrest of his wife.

Supporters said local officials trumped up the charges - of damaging property and organising a mob to disturb traffic - to punish Mr Chen for organising a class-action lawsuit on behalf of the women who suffered at the hands of family planning officers.

The appeal court made no comment, but Mr Chen's legal team said the ruling proved that the first trial was a travesty.

"This shows there were many problems with the first trial and it proves the importance of domestic and international support," said Teng Biao, a lawyer from Beijing.

Mr Teng said it was unclear whether the retrial would lead to Mr Chen's release, particularly given that it will take place at the same Yinan county court that issued the initial sentence. "We are aiming for an acquittal, but that will be difficult. If the lower court returns an innocent verdict, the police and the judges will have to recognise they made a mistake. They won't want to lose face like that."

Mr Chen's wife, Yuan Weijing - who has been placed under house arrest - said the verdict was as much as she could hope for, but questioned whether her husband would receive justice second time round.

"I am so happy. I didn't dare to believe this would come true," she said. "This gives us a chance, but only if the retrial is carried out fairly and openly. I don't know if that is realistic. How can it be fair, if even the wife of the defendant is unable to leave her home?"

Amnesty International has described Mr Chen as a prisoner of conscience since he was first detained - without charges - in September 2005.

"Forcing him to stand trial again smacks of persecution. The case should be thrown out of court," said Mark Allison, Amnesty's east Asia researcher.

"We consider the charges against Chen Guangcheng to be a politically motivated attempt to prevent him from carrying out his peaceful and legitimate activities as a human rights defender."