Chinese journalist freed after four years in prison for COVID reporting

Washington — In early 2020, during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing lockdown in the Chinese city of Wuhan, a handful of citizen journalists emerged as voices from the epicenter.

Among them was Zhang Zhan, then a 36-year-old former lawyer who bravely chronicled the unfolding crisis in the city where the virus first surfaced.

Standing in front of a Wuhan train station in her final YouTube video on May 13, 2020, she voiced concerns about the human rights abuses she witnessed during the lockdown and criticized police involvement in enforcing containment measures.

Following “this last video,” she vanished, according to Jane Wang, a U.K.-based activist who launched the Free Zhang Zhan campaign.

“The date of her arrest should be 14th May, but it could have happened on the evening of the 13th, so we aren't sure,” Wang told VOA. “The time she spent on the train escorted by police to Shanghai from Wuhan is in between.”

In December 2020, the Chinese government sentenced her to four years in prison for allegedly “picking quarrels and provoking trouble.”

On Monday, Wang posted a 28-second video to X, formerly known as Twitter, in which Zhang confirmed her release from prison on May 13 and wished well to the people who were concerned about her well-being.

“Hello, everyone, I am Zhang Zhan. At five o'clock in the morning on May 13, the police brought me to my brother's home in Shanghai. Thank you all for your help and concern for me. Hope everyone is well. I really don't have anything to say,” Zhang said in the video.

The video came one week after Zhang was expected to be released from Shanghai Women’s Prison on May 13, but she did not publicly surface for several days. On May 17, the U.S. State Department issued a statement expressing concern about her disappearance after her apparent release.

“The United States has repeatedly expressed our serious concerns about the arbitrary nature of her detention and authorities’ mistreatment of her,” the State Department said at that time. “We reiterate our call for the PRC [People's Republic of China] to respect the human rights of Ms. Zhang, including by immediately ending the restrictive measures that she and all journalists in the PRC face.”

The State Department urged China to ensure the safety and freedom of journalists in the country, emphasizing the importance of enabling them to report freely.

Additionally, the State Department’s recently released human rights report on China pointed out “serious restrictions” on freedom of expression and media, including criminal prosecution of journalists, lawyers, writers, bloggers, dissidents, petitioners, and others.” It also cited the arrest of “countless citizens” for allegedly “spreading fake news.”

Several other citizen journalists faced disappearances like Zhang’s and later were sentenced to prison for documenting the initial stages of the pandemic in China.

Any expression of views differing from the government on pandemic-related matters continues to be a sensitive issue in China, according to Lin Shengliang, founder of the China Human Rights Accountability Database.

“The Chinese authorities often resort to both soft and hard tactics to the parties involved in order to silence them,” Lin told VOA.

According to Li Yong, a Wuhan citizen who shared the U.S. State Department’s statement on Zhang in a WeChat group, the Chinese State Security forces warned him not to share information about Zhang.

“The local community’s state security officer said, ‘These posts are no longer allowed. Be silent. Things involving Zhang Zhan are not allowed [to be shared].’ Anyway, I promised not to post it again," Li told VOA.

According to Li, he befriended Zhang when she came to Wuhan in 2020.

“I advised her to take a step back [in her criticism of the government]. But she was a person of faith and was more persistent at that time,” Li said.

According to Wang, the U.K.-based activist, Zhang is a “devoted Christian” who openly expressed her faith.

“Her church was shut down [four years ago] and banned from gathering before she went to Wuhan,” Wang said. “It's a big question mark whether she [currently] is allowed to travel to another city or even attend a church gathering in Shanghai.”

Wang said that Zhang’s situation may change “dramatically” when and if the authorities decide to step up surveillance against her.

“Right now, guards are watching her apartment, and she is being followed everywhere, but she still can leave her flat and has her phone and WeChat account,” Wang said, citing a friend of Zhan’s, whose name she didn’t want to disclose for safety reasons. “The worst is for plainclothes [police] to break in and stay in the home, taking her phone away.”