Beijing - Authorities in Beijing on Friday razed the home of
a rights activist who has spent seven months in police custody since
she was accused of injuring a worker in a dispute over plans to
demolish the property.
The home of Ni Yulan and her family was demolished on Friday
morning as part of a local government redevelopment plan in Beijing's
Xicheng district, supporters including Ni's husband, Dong Jiqin, told
Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.
Ni, 48, was arrested on April 15 when she tried to stop some two
dozen people from knocking down a wall enclosing part of the yard
outside their home, which they refuse to vacate for developers
despite years of pressure and threats.
The police claimed that she caused serious injury to a worker
while she was trying to stop them from damaging her property.
'This was an excuse to arrest her,' Dong, 56, said in an interview
earlier this month. 'They didn't have any evidence.'
The authorities have not allowed Dong to visit Ni but a lawyer has
seen her three times and reported that she was in poor health and
complained of mistreatment during police interviews.
Ni's trial was set for August but postponed, and Dong said he
feared she could be sentenced to up to two years in prison this time.
Her career was first interrupted in 2002 when police illegally
detained her for 75 days for filming a forced relocation.
During that detention, Dong said, Ni was beaten and not given
medical treatment.
She was left with permanent back and leg injuries and now walks
with the aid of crutches, he said.
Ni also lost her right to practise law following a criminal
conviction in late 2002 for 'obstructing public business', the same
charge she faces now.
Dong said Ni had told her lawyer that the police had confiscated
her crutches and made her crawl to use the bathroom during her latest
detention.
Ni's family are among hundreds of thousands of people moved
over the past 20 years to allow the demolition of most of Beijing's
traditional one-storey housing, which has made way for vast new
commercial and residential complexes.
Many Beijingers were forcibly evicted after refusing to move
because they were unhappy with compensation or alternative
accommodation offered by developers and the local government.
Some attempted lawsuits, staged protests and lobbied officials
over the heavy-handed redevelopment, but few succeeded in winning
more than token concessions.
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