China #MeToo activist is sentenced to 5 years in prison

Leading Chinese #MeToo activist Huang Xueqin was handed a five-year sentence after being found guilty of state subversion at a court in southern China.

GUANGZHOU, China — Leading Chinese #MeToo activist Huang Xueqin was handed a five-year sentence after being found guilty on Friday of state subversion at a court in southern China, according to a group campaigning for her release and a copy of the court verdict.

Huang, a 35-year-old independent journalist, plans to appeal her sentence, supporters said. Labor activist Wang Jianbing, 40, who also stood trial with Huang, was sentenced to three years and six months. It was not immediately clear whether he would appeal.

The sentence “was longer than we expected,” said a spokesperson for the campaign group Free Huang Xueqin and Wang Jianbing, asking to remain anonymous for safety concerns.

“I don’t think it should have been this severe, and it is completely unnecessary. So we support Huang Xueqin’s intention to appeal.”

Detained by Chinese authorities since September 2021, the pair were put on trial last year. They denied any wrongdoing during the closed-door trial, supporters have said.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/china-metoo-activist-sentenced-5-years-prison-rcna157136

---