The founder of a grassroots movement to boost accountability for China's officials went on trial today on charges of disrupting public order but stayed silent during the closed-door proceedings in protest, his lawyer said.
The trial against New Citizens founder Xu Zhiyong reflects determination by the administration of leader Xi Jinping to quash the loosely knit activists before they can challenge Communist Party rule, even though their goals largely overlap with the party's stated drive to root out public corruption and build a fairer society.
"If it is a crime to demand a clean government, to ask officials to declare assets, and to demand equity in education, then how can this country have equality and justice?" said Du Guowang, an activist for education equity with no link to the movement. "This government has no confidence, but is fearful."
Xu has participated in small public rallies that have, among other issues, called for officials to declare their assets as a way of curbing graft, something party leaders have expressed willingness to consider, but have resisted while pushing a high-profile corruption crackdown.
The proceedings opened the same day a US-based journalist group released a report linking relatives of Xi and other political leaders to offshore tax havens, renewing allegations that the communist elite has benefited from China's economic boom and hidden the proceeds overseas.
Since April 2013, authorities have detained about 17 people linked to the New Citizens movement, putting three of them on trial in the southeastern province of Jiangxi in late 2013. No verdict has been issued for the Jiangxi trials.
Today's trial against Xu opened the second round of prosecution. At least six other activists will appear in court tomorrow and Friday in Beijing, and political and legal observers believe all will be found guilty and jailed for several years.
Xu stayed mum in court as a way of protesting what he considered the trial's injustice, according to a brief account sent via text message by his lawyer, Zhang Qingfang.
The charges against Xu stem from public gatherings at which activists unfurled banners calling for assets' disclosures or equality in education.
Willy Lam, a political observer at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said that the New Citizens group drew the attention of authorities partly because the movement had adherents in several provinces.
"The government has no rational reason to arrest them, to prosecute these people," Lam said. "But it is seen as a threat to political stability. It has a cross-provincial network, and that's a big no-no.
