Chinese #MeToo journalist jailed for five years

A salient pistillate #MeToo activistic successful China has been handed a five-year jailhouse condemnation for "subversion against the state".

Sophia Huang Xueqin was convicted and sentenced connected Friday, astir 10 months aft she went connected trial.

Labour activistic Wang Jianbing, who stood proceedings with Ms Huang, was sentenced to 3 years and six months successful prison.

Ms Huang, 36, had been 1 of the astir salient voices successful China's #MeToo space, reporting ground-breaking stories astir intersexual maltreatment victims.

She had besides spoken retired astir the misogyny and sexism she faced successful Chinese newsrooms.

Chinese authorities person not made it wide however the 2 stood accused of subversion. The proceedings was a closed-door hearing.

But their supporters accidental they were detained due to the fact that they hosted regular meetings and forums for young radical to sermon societal issues.

Ms Huang had been connected her mode to instrumentality up a UK-government sponsored masters assistance astatine the University of Sussex erstwhile she was detained astatine the airdrome successful the metropolis of Guangzhou successful 2021.

Mr Wang, 40, was with her astatine that time.

Supporters accidental some person endured months of solitary confinement during their pre-detention custody, which lasted for astir 1,000 days. Their proceedings lone began successful September 2023.

A BBC Eye probe successful 2022 recovered that some were being held successful solitary confinement, detained successful concealed locations known arsenic 'black jails'.

In 2021, amid Covid lockdowns and increasing nationalist anger, Chinese authorities launched a crackdown connected respective activists moving crossed antithetic fields.

"Their efforts and dedication to labour, women's rights, and the broader civilian nine won't beryllium negated by this unjust trial, nor volition nine hide their contributions," said the run radical Free Huang Xueqin and Wang Jianbing.

"On the contrary, arsenic oppression persists and injustice grows, much activists similar them volition proceed to rise."

Amnesty International connected Friday called the convictions "malicious and wholly groundless".

"[They] amusement conscionable however terrified the Chinese authorities is of the emerging question of activists who situation to talk retired to support the rights of others," said Amnesty International’s China Director Sarah Brooks.

"#MeToo activism has empowered survivors of intersexual unit astir the world, but successful this case, the Chinese authorities person sought to bash the nonstop other by stamping it out."

It is unclear if the clip already served by the brace volition spell towards reducing their sentence.

Public absorption to Ms Huang's proceedings has antecedently been mixed - with immoderate online decrying the lawsuit portion others captious of the feminist question welcomed it.

Many advocates for sex rights and societal causes successful China take to stay anonymous online.

Often they person been accused of being "agents of hostile occidental forces" by authorities media and nationalists connected the internet.