Pu Zhiqiang: Chinese court convicts prominent human rights lawyer who defended Ai Weiwei over Weibo posts

The case related to seven Weibo posts discussing the ruling Communist Party and its treatment of ethnic minorities

Chinese human rights lawyer Pu Zhiqiang talks to the media in Beijing in this July 20, 2012 (Reuters)

A prominent Chinese human rights lawyer who has defended dissident artist Ai Weiwei and labour camp victims has been convicted over comments made on social media.

Pu Zhiqiang was handed a three-year suspended sentence for “inciting ethnic hatred” and “picking quarrels and provoking trouble”, according to CCTV state television.

Tuesday’s ruling by the Beijing No. 2 Intermediate People's Court forbids him from practicing law for life and will keep him under strict probation conditions during the suspension period.

A man pushes a videojournalist, left, near the Beijing No. 2 People's Intermediate Court where human rights lawyer Pu Zhiqiang was sentenced in Beijing, China, Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2015. (AP)

Police and security officers prevented a crowd of supporters and journalists, with at least one protester being hauled away by police while diplomats from the US and EU said they were refused entry to the hearing.

The case was sparked by seven posts between 2011 and 2014 on Weibo – China’s state-censored social media site – which mocked the Communist Party and questioned policies towards ethnic minorities in Xinjiang province.

Mr Ai, who Mr Pu represented during the artists battle against tax authorities in 2012, told Reuters he was not guilty of any offence.

“He should receive an apology from the state and compensation,” he added.

Mr Pu has been released into ”residential surveillance“ - a form of detention used to keep Chinese dissidents away from the public eye - for 10 days before being allowed to return to his home in Beijing, according to his lawyer.

He had already spent nearly 19 months in detention before his trial last week, which lasted just over three hours.

Mr Pu has represented other well-known dissidents, including activists in the ”New Citizens' Movement“, which called on Chinese leaders to make their wealth public.

He also was instrumental in pushing for the eventual abolishment of China's labour camp system, which allowed police to imprison people for up to four years without a trial.

Mr Pu was detained shortly after attending a meeting to discuss commemorating the 25 year anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre in May last year

Scuffles outside Beijing court as human rights lawyer Pu Zhiqiang goes on trial (AP)

His lawyers said he could have faced eight years in prison but activists said the milder sentence passed down would still serve as a message to other rights lawyers that the Communist Party, currently engaged in a severe clampdown on dissent, would allow no challenge to its rule.

Shang Baojun, who represented Mr Pu, said his client was relieved and would not be launching an appeal.

"He said he thanks everyone and he wants to rest,“ he added. “He also said if there's an opportunity, history will deliver a true judgment.”

State news agency Xinhua said the court decided “to impose a lenient punishment” due to “the fact that the defendant Pu Zhiqiang truthfully confessed to the facts of the crime and positively pleaded guilty”.

But Mr Shang said his client had done no such thing, telling journalists he told the court he had broken no law.

The US said through its embassy that it was concerned about the suspended sentence and urged authorities to restore Mr Pu’s rights and let him resume his work.

But Hong Lei, a spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry, said foreign governments must respect China's judicial sovereignty and should not interfere.

Amnesty International welcomed the suspended sentence but condemned the guilty verdict.

“Clearly it is positive that Pu Zhiqiang is unlikely to spend another night in jail, yet that cannot hide the gross injustice against him,” William Nee, China researcher for the group, said in a statement.

“He is no criminal and this guilty verdict effectively shackles one of China's bravest champions of human rights from practicing law.”

Since coming to power in 2013, President Xi Jinping has spearheaded crackdowns on civil activists, rights lawyers and online freedom of expression, in moves aimed at snuffing out any potential threats to the Communist Party's grip on power.

Additional reporting by AP and Reuters