HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH Publications “Leaking State Secrets”: The Case of Gao Yu July 1995, Vol. 7, No. 8 (C) SUMMARY | TABLE OF CONTENTS SUMMARY Gao Yu, 51, one of China’s most prominent journalists, was sentenced to six years in prison on November 10, 1994, for “illegally providing state secrets to institutions outside [China’s] borders” in a series of four articles in Mirror Monthly and Overseas Chinese Daily, both Hong Kong-based publications. The “secrets” in question related to policy decisions taken by senior officials of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in early 1993, and those decisions had already been reported in the Hong Kong press — including by pro-Beijing papers. Gao Yu’s arrest and conviction sent shock waves through media circles in Hong Kong. But she was only one of a string of journalists, government employees and others tried and sentenced to severe prison terms over the past two years for “leaks” judged “harmful to state security” under laws and regulations which allow the Chinese authorities virtually unlimited latitude to suppress information. These laws have often been used against individuals who have been involved in some form of dissident activity; about half of those described here fall into this category. All those accused of leaking state secrets, including Gao Yu, have been tried in camera, regardless of whether or not the information involved had subsequently become public knowledge, and none of the verdicts in these cases have been made public, as required by Chinese law. But Human Rights in China and Human Rights Watch/Asia have obtained the trial documents in the Gao Yu case and, for the first time, an analysis of the treatment by China’s legal system of “official secrets” cases is possible. The trial documents are attached as Appendices I-VI. TABLE OF CONTENTS SUMMARY GAO YU’S “CRIMES” OFFICIAL SECRETS IN CHINA THE LEGAL PROCEEDINGS GAO’S DEFENSE: NO HARM DONE, NO HARM INTENDED POLITICAL REASONS FOR ARRESTING GAO YU OTHER SECRETS CASES CONCLUSIONS APPENDIX I: INDICTMENT OF THE BEIJING MUNICIPAL PEOPLE’S PROCURATORATE APPENDIX II: VERDICT OF THE BEIJING INTERMEDIATE PEOPLE’S COURT APPENDIX III: MY PERSONAL STATEMENT TO THE COURT APPENDIX IV: DEFENSE STATEMENT OF ZHANG SIZHI APPENDIX V: DEFENSE STATEMENT IN THE CASE OF GAO YU CHARGED WITH SPYING AND ILLEGALLY PROVIDING STATE SECRETS APPENDIX VI: WRITTEN DEFENSE ARGUMENT IN THE CASE OF GAO YU TO THE COURT OF SECOND INSTANCE Human Rights Watch July 1995 Vol. 7, No. 8 (C) To order the full text of this report click HERE. For more Human Rights Watch reports on China click HERE. To return to the list of 1996 publications click HERE. Or, to return to the index of Human Rights Watch reports click HERE. 
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