Zhang Sizhi (; 12 November 1927 – 24 June 2022) was an active rights lawyer in China, and a professor at

Central University of Finance and Economics Central University of Finance and Economics (CUFE; ), is a national public research university located in Beijing, China. Central University of Finance and Economics is the first economics and management university which was founded by the China ...

. He was known as "The lawyer's conscience".

Biography

Zhang was born as the eldest of 10 children to Zhang Jingtang and Meng Yanrong on November 12, 1927 in

Zhengzhou Zhengzhou (; ), also spelt Zheng Zhou and alternatively romanized as Chengchow, is the capital and largest city of Henan Province in the central part of the People's Republic of China. Located in north-central Henan, it is one of the National ...

. His father was a doctor who practiced

Chinese traditional medicine Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. It has been described as "fraught with pseudoscience", with the majority of its treatments having no logical mechanism of action ...

. In 1944, at the age of 16, he joined the

Chinese Expeditionary Force The Chinese Expeditionary Force () was an expeditionary unit of Republic of China (1912-1949), China's National Revolutionary Army that was dispatched to British rule in Burma, Burma and British Raj, India in support of the Allies of World War II ...

. Three years later, he was admitted to Chaoyang university. After graduating from university, he became a judge. In 1950, he graduated from the

People's University of China The Renmin University of China (RUC; ) is a national key public research university in Beijing, China. The university is affiliated to the Ministry of Education, and co-funded by the Ministry and the Beijing Municipal People's Government. RUC ...

. During the

Anti-Rightist Movement The Anti-Rightist Campaign () in the People's Republic of China, which lasted from 1957 to roughly 1959, was a political campaign to purge alleged "Rightists" within the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the country as a whole. The campaign was l ...

, he was divided into right, was sentenced to 15 years in a village. In 1972, he was free to act as a teacher. In July 1979, Zhang returned as a lawyer and participated in the trials of "

Lin Biao ) , serviceyears = 1925–1971 , branch = People's Liberation Army , rank = Marshal of the People's Republic of China Lieutenant general of the National Revolutionary Army, Republic of China , commands ...

Anti-Revolutionary Group Case" and "Jiang Qing Anti-Revolutionary Group Case", commonly known as the "Two Cases", serving as defense lawyers for

Jiang Qing Jiang Qing (19 March 191414 May 1991), also known as Madame Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary, actress, and major political figure during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976). She was the fourth wife of Mao Zedong, the Chairman o ...

and others. After the

1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre The Tiananmen Square protests, known in Chinese as the June Fourth Incident (), were student-led demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square, Beijing during 1989. In what is known as the Tiananmen Square Massacre, or in Chinese the June Fourth ...

, he defended liberals such as

Bao Tong Bao Tong ( zh, s=鲍彤; 5 November 1932 – 9 November 2022) was a Chinese writer and activist. He was Director of the Office of Political Reform of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Policy Secretary of Zhao Z ...

Wang Juntao Wang Juntao (; born 1958) is a Chinese dissident and democracy activist accused by the Communist government for being one of the “black hands” behind the Tiananmen Student Movement. He was listed first on the government's “six important cr ...

, Gao Yu and Pu Zhiqiang, as well as rights lawyers. On 24 June 2022, he died from cancer 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 ...

, at the age of 94.

Awards

* 2008 Petra Kelly Prize by Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung for his outstanding contributions to the protection of

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 ...

and the construction of a legal state and lawyer system in China.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zhang, Sizhi 1927 births 2022 deaths Independent politicians in the People's Republic of China Central University of Finance and Economics faculty Renmin University of China alumni Charter 08 signatories Chinese human rights activists Chinese dissidents Weiquan movement People from Zhengzhou

Biography

Awards

See also

References