A Chinese citizen journalist who covered Wuhan’s coronavirus outbreak has been jailed for four years.
Zhang Zhan was found guilty of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble”. This is a charge frequently used against those speaking out against the CCP state.
The 37-year-old former lawyer was detained in May, and has been on hunger strike for several months. Her lawyers say she that she is now extremely unwell.
Zhang is one of several citizen journalists who have run into trouble for reporting on Wuhan.
She was formally charged in early November. The indictment sheet alleges she sent “false information through text, video and other media through [platforms like] WeChat, Twitter and YouTube”.
She is also accused of accepting interviews with foreign media outlets and “maliciously spreading” information about the virus in Wuhan. A sentence of four to five years was recommended.
Several other citizen journalists who reported from Wuhan, Li Zehua, Chen Qiushi and Fang Bin, all disappeared in mysterious circumstances.
Li eventually resurfaced, saying he was forcibly quarantined, while Chen is reported to be staying with family but under government supervision. The whereabouts of Fang Bin are still unknown.
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