A Chinese court postponed the trial of a prominent human rights lawyer on Tuesday, his supporters said, in a case that has sparked international concern after allegations he was tortured. -Collected
A Chinese court indefinitely postponed the trial of a prominent human rights lawyer on Tuesday, his supporters said, in a case that has sparked international concern after allegations he was tortured. Xie Yang, who had worked on numerous cases considered politically sensitive by the ruling Communist Party, was among hundreds of legal staff and activists detained in a crackdown in the summer of 2015.
Dozens of supporters and several diplomats gathered at the court in the central city of Changsha for the start of Xie's trial believed to be on charges of inciting subversion of state power were told the case would not be heard on Tuesday.
Last-minute delays in sensitive trials are not uncommon even though Chinese law requires courts to give a defendant's family and lawyers three days notice of any changes, said Amnesty Interna-tional China researcher Patrick Poon. A new date was not provided.
Xie, who was arrested in the so-called 709 crackdown, claims police have used sleep deprivation, long interrogations, beatings, death threats, humiliations on him, and the EU has voiced concern over his case.
-AFP, Changsha
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