Cao Shunli (; 196214 March 2014) was a Chinese lawyer and

human rights Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...

activist.

Early life

Cao was born in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, but during the

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goal ...

(19661971) she was forcibly deported along with her family to their ancestral home in Zhaoyuan, Shandong Province as a result of her grandfather being a member of the "enemy classes" according to

Communist Party of China The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil ...

doctrine of the time. After attending Beijing College of Political Science and Law and a period of post-graduate study she was assigned to work at the research centre of the Ministry of Labor and Human Resources.

Political activism

During the 2002 housing reforms, Cao reported corruption amongst her supervisors and lost her job. Thereafter she became a human rights activist and subsequently served at least two terms in prison camps as a result of her activities.

Arrest and death

Following a two-month sit-in at the

Foreign Affairs Ministry A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between coun ...

as part of a group demanding a national human rights review, in September 2013 Cao planned to attend a training session on human rights held by the

International Service for Human Rights The International Service for Human Rights (ISHR) is an independent, non-profit organization with offices in Geneva and New York which promotes and protects human rights by supporting human rights defenders, strengthening human rights standards ...

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. However, she was arrested at Beijing Airport, and disappeared for several weeks. In October 2013 she was charged with illegal assembly and

picking quarrels and provoking trouble Picking quarrels and provoking trouble () (also translated as picking quarrels and stirring up trouble or picking quarrels and making trouble) is a crime under the law of the People's Republic of China. The official translation of this crime is ...

. Cao was diagnosed with

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

in November 2013, and fell into a coma in February 2014, at which point she was transferred to a military hospital in Beijing. Cao died in hospital on 14March 2014, with her body showing "signs of her mistreatment during approximately five and half months in detention".

Arrest of her protege in 2019

In 2019, activist Chen Jianfanga protege of Cao who had likewise been prevented from attending the training session in Switzerland in 2013, but been released after brief detentionpenned an essay to mark the fifth anniversary of Cao's death. Chen was detained by authorities on 20 March 2019 and charged with subversion of state power, having been held incommunicado as of October that year.

Award of her name

The Cao Shunli Memorial Award for Human Rights Defenders, award in her name, was founded by Chinese human rights activists. The award ceremony goes every 14 March in memory of the activist. Human rights activists also said they will celebrate the every 14 March as "Human Rights Defenders Day" to mark the day Cao Shunli died.

References

Amnesty International prisoners of conscience held by China Chinese activists Chinese women activists Chinese dissidents 1962 births 2014 deaths Chinese people who died in prison custody Prisoners who died in Chinese detention Women human rights activists {{China-bio-stub