Jailed China rights lawyer allowed to see wife after four years

Jailed Chinese rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang was allowed to see his wife and young son on Friday for the first time in nearly four years since he disappeared in a crackdown.

Wang, 43, was sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison in January for "subverting state power" following a closed-door trial.

A prominent lawyer who defended political activists and victims of land seizures, Wang vanished in a sweep aimed at courtroom critics of Communist authorities known as the "709" clampdown because the arrests started on July 9, 2015.

Wang was held incommunicado for over 1,000 days without access to his family or a lawyer prior to his trial and authorities have repeatedly denied requests by his wife Li Wenzu to visit him in jail.

"My husband's health has deteriorated during the long incarceration, he had lost so much weight," Li told AFP.

"When I asked him what he had for breakfast, he kept scratching his head. But he couldn't remember," she said.

"It was really emotional. This was the first time my son and I got a chance to see him after being separated for four years."
"We have been calling the prison authorities all week to no avail, and then suddenly they changed their mind."