Chen at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing on May 1, 2012
Born
(1971-11-12) November 12, 1971 (age 52)
Dongshigu, Yinan County, Shandong, China
Nationality
American (since 2021)[1] Chinese (former)
Alma mater
Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine
Occupation
Civil rights activist
Years active
2006–present
Known for
Anti-corruption activism
Political party
Republican
Spouse
Yuan Weijing
Children
Chen Kerui Chen Kesi
Awards
Time 100 (2006) Ramon Magsaysay Award (2007)
In this Chinese name, the family name is Chen.
Chen Guangcheng
Simplified Chinese
陈光诚
Traditional Chinese
陳光誠
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin
Chén Guāngchéng
IPA
[ʈʂʰə̌n kwáŋʈʂʰə̌ŋ]
Chen Guangcheng (born November 12, 1971) is a Chinese civil rights activist who has worked on human rights issues in rural areas of the People's Republic of China. Blind from an early age and self-taught in the law, Chen is frequently described as a "barefoot lawyer" who advocates for women's rights, land rights, and the welfare of the poor.
In 2005 Chen gained international recognition for organising a landmark class-action lawsuit against authorities in Linyi, Shandong province, for the excessive enforcement of the one-child policy. As a result of this lawsuit, Chen was placed under house arrest from September 2005 to March 2006, with a formal arrest in June 2006. On 24 August 2006 Chen was sentenced to four years and three months for "damaging property and organising a mob to disturb traffic." He was released from prison in 2010 after serving his full sentence, but remained under house arrest or "soft detention" at his home in Dongshigu Village. Chen and his wife were reportedly beaten shortly after a human rights group released a video of their home under intense police surveillance in February 2011.
Chen's case received sustained international attention, with the U.S. State Department, the British Foreign Secretary, Human Rights Watch, and Amnesty International issuing appeals for his release; the latter group designated him a prisoner of conscience. Chen won the laureate of Ramon in 2006 is a 2007 laureate of the Ramon Magsaysay Award and in 2006 was named to the Time 100.
In April 2012 Chen escaped his house arrest and fled to the Embassy of the United States, Beijing. After negotiations with the Chinese government, he left the embassy for medical treatment in early May 2012, and it was reported that China would consider allowing him to travel to the United States to study. On 19 May 2012, Chen, his wife, and his two children were granted U.S. visas and departed Beijing for New York City. In October 2013, Chen accepted a position with the conservative research group Witherspoon Institute, and a position at the Catholic University of America.[2]
^"Blind Chinese Dissident Who Escaped in 2012 Now a US Citizen". Voice of America. Associated Press. 13 July 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2022. - Chinese version
^Jacobs, Andrew (2 October 2013). "Chinese Activist Joins Conservative Research Group". The New York Times.
ChenGuangcheng (born November 12, 1971) is a Chinese civil rights activist who has worked on human rights issues in rural areas of the People's Republic...
Terry (1 October 2013). "Chinese Dissident Chen Joins Witherspoon Institute". Bloomberg. "ChenGuangcheng Appointed Distinguished Senior Fellow in Human...
examples of barefoot lawyers include the blind self-taught activist ChenGuangcheng, and Guo Feixiong. Since the legal reforms of the late 1970s and 1980s...
Bale, with a crew from the television network CNN, attempted to visit ChenGuangcheng, a confined blind barefoot lawyer, in a village in eastern China. He...
editorial, Ai Weiwei interviewed the Chinese civil rights activist ChenGuangcheng, who fled to the United States after exposing the use of compulsory...
Lawyers include He Weifang, Xu Zhiyong, Teng Biao, Guo Feixiong and ChenGuangcheng, Gao Zhisheng, Zheng Enchong, and Li Heping. Many barefoot lawyers...
Odierno, Robert McFarlane, Robert P. George, Lady Blanka Rosenstiel, ChenGuangcheng, and LTG Michael Flynn. The Institute of World Politics is accredited...
2012, the case of the blind activist ChenGuangcheng triggered a diplomatic dispute between China and the US. Chen was permitted to study law in mainland...
Beijing. He has been a vocal supporter of human rights activists such as ChenGuangcheng and Hu Jia. He has been arrested at least twice, in March 2008 and...
Adviser of the U.S. Department of State with the blind Chinese lawyer ChenGuangcheng (center) and U.S. Ambassador to China Gary Locke (right) at the U.S...
the 2007 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership (shared with ChenGuangcheng). Chung received his bachelor's degree from Columbia University and...
helping the blind activist ChenGuangcheng travel to Beijing after Chen escaped from house arrest in an eastern Chinese village. Chen then sought shelter in...
of freedom of the press in China Chai Ling Chang Ping Chaohua Wang ChenGuangcheng Dong Yaoqiong Fang Lizhi Feng Congde Feng Zhenghu Gao Xingjian, recipient...
transportation activist Miro Griffiths – disabled academic and activist ChenGuangcheng – Chinese civil rights activist Rick Hansen – former Canadian Paralympian;...
construction of the memorial. Past recipients include Myroslav Marynovych, ChenGuangcheng, Tom Lantos, Pope John Paul II, Vaclav Havel, Yang Jianli, Thadeus...
lawyer and labor advocate. ChenGuangcheng – Lawyer and Ramon Magsaysay Award winner was imprisoned in China on 22 April 2012, Chen escaped from house arrest...
[dubious – discuss] which was imposed on the human rights activist ChenGuangcheng involves limited movement of the prisoner to their home, constant surveillance...
defender ChenGuangcheng filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of the victims. The local Chinese courts refused to hear the case and imprisoned Chen Guangcheng...
aggravating the problem.[citation needed] On 17 September 2008, Health Minister Chen Zhu stated tainted milk formula had "sickened more than 6,200 children, and...
Global Information