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Chen Qiushi
File:Chen Qiushi.png
Born19 September 1985 Edit this on Wikidata
Daxing'anling Prefecture (China) Edit this on Wikidata
DisappearedFebruary 6, 2020 (aged 34)
Wuhan, China
StatusMissing for 4 years, 6 months and 25 days
Alma mater
OccupationLawyer, citizen journalist Edit this on Wikidata

Chen Qiushi (simplified Chinese: 陈秋实; traditional Chinese: 陳秋實; pinyin: Chén Qiūshí; Mandarin pronunciation: [ʈʂʰə̌n tɕʰjóʊ.ʂɻ̩̌]; born September 1985[1]) is a Chinese lawyer, activist, and popular citizen journalist who became widely known for providing firsthand coverage of the 2019–20 Hong Kong protests and the COVID-19 pandemic which included criticism of the government response. He was last heard from on 6 February 2020; as of May 2020, his whereabouts remain unknown. The Chinese government reportedly informed Chen's family and friends that he has been detained for the purpose of COVID-19 quarantine. Critics, including media freedom groups, have expressed skepticism about government motives, and have unsuccessfully called on the government to allow outside contact with Chen.

Childhood and education

Chen Qiushi was born in September 1985 in Daxing'anling Prefecture, Heilongjiang, China, and studied law at Heilongjiang University. After graduating, he joined a law firm in Beijing.[1]

Journalism

Hong Kong protests

Chen posted online videos reporting on the protests in Hong Kong against the 2019 extradition bill, criticizing the government for characterizing the protestors as violent rioters. Days after the videos' August 2019 release, he was allegedly summoned to China by Beijing authorities, who deleted his Sina Weibo account and videos. Before deletion, his Sina Weibo account had had 740,000 followers. He also stated that he has been harassed by authorities, and that on 1 October he was briefly detained.[2]

COVID-19

After being blocked from Chinese social media for his reports on the 2019–20 Hong Kong protests, Chen took to Youtube and Twitter to continue his reporting. Chen began reporting on the COVID-19 pandemic, travelling to Hankou, Wuhan, on 23[3] or 24[4] January 2020, where he interviewed the locals and visited various hospitals including Huoshenshan Hospital, which was still under construction at the time. According to Chen, doctors were overworked and there were insufficient medical supplies, but prices of goods were otherwise stable.[4] Chen published a video on 30 January showing the crowding in Wuhan hospitals, with many people lying in corridors. Unlike state media reporters who had hazmat suits, Chen appeared to have only goggles and a face mask to protect himself.[3] Chen stated,

I am afraid. In front of me is disease. Behind me is China's legal and administrative power. But as long as I am alive I will speak about what I have seen and what I have heard. I am not afraid of dying. Why should I be afraid of you, Communist Party?

— Chen Qiushi, 30 January 2020[3]

By early February 2020, while reporting about the coronavirus outbreak, Chen had 433,000 YouTube subscribers and 246,000 Twitter followers.[5] Chen's supporters accused the Chinese government of censorship of the coronavirus outbreak. According to The Guardian, many pro-Chen comments on Sina Weibo were censored.[3] Around 4 February, in the last video posted by Chen before his subsequent disappearance, Chen interviewed Wuhan resident "A Ming". A Ming stated his father had probably contracted coronavirus during a health check-up in the beginning of January, when there were no safety precautions; A Ming's father had subsequently died from the virus. During the video Chen stated "many people are worried I will be detained".

Journalist Linda Lew, writing in South China Morning Post, later judged that Chen was one of the most high-profile citizen journalists covering the coronavirus outbreak. She also stated that that Chen's reporting contrasted with Caixin and Sanlian Lifeweek, which have "lines they cannot cross", and that Chen's reporting contrasted even more strongly with the "official line" of state-controlled media.[6]

February 2020 disappearance

Chen disappeared on 6 February 2020, at some point after informing his family of an intention to report on a temporary hospital.[7] His friends were unable to contact him after 7 pm UTC+8 on 6 February.[8] His mother, and friend Xu Xiaodong, have both stated that on 7 February, they received news from authorities that Chen had been detained at an undeclared time and place and held in an unknown location for the purpose of quarantine.[9]

Amnesty International's Patrick Poon said around 14 February 2020 that it was still unknown whether Chen (and another citizen journalist, Fang Bin) had been arrested or placed under "forced quarantine". Poon called on China to inform their families and provide access to a lawyer, stating: "Otherwise, it's a legitimate concern that they are at risk of torture or other ill-treatment."[10] A Human Rights Watch representative stated the Chinese government "has a history of harassing and detaining citizens for speaking the truth or for criticizing the authorities during public emergencies, for example, during SARS in 2003, Wenchuan earthquake in 2008, Wenzhou train crash in 2011 and Tianjin chemical explosion in 2015."[10] Around March 2020 it was reported that Li Zehua, a citizen journalist in part inspired by Chen, had also disappeared.[11][12] The One Free Press Coalition included Chen in both its March 2020 and April 2020 lists of the ten "most urgent" cases.[13][7] The Committee to Protect Journalists has also called for Chen's release.[14] Republican lawmakers in the U.S. called for an inquiry into the Chinese government's behavior, including the disappearances of Fang Bin, Chen Qiushi, and Li Zehua, saying "(The Chinese authorities) lied to the world about the human-to-human transmission of the virus, silenced doctors and journalists who tried to report the truth, and are now apparently hiding the accurate number of people impacted by this disease."[15] Li Zehua resurfaced in April 2020, stating he had been released on 28 March from a quarantine.[16]

See also

  • Li Zehua, a Chinese citizen journalist who disappeared for two months after reporting on COVID-19 in Wuhan.
  • Fang Bin

References

  1. ^ a b ""我是演说家"东北小伙陈秋实讲《大东北》解密"你瞅啥"". Liaoning Wanbao 辽沈晚报 (in Simplified Chinese). 22 October 2014. Archived from the original on 4 September 2019. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  2. ^ Gan, Nectar (16 October 2019). "Chinese lawyer Chen Qiushi, censured over Hong Kong social media posts, vows to keep speaking out". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on 10 February 2020. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  3. ^ a b c d Kuo, Lily; Yang, Lillian (10 February 2020). "Coronavirus: journalist missing in Wuhan as anger towards Chinese authorities grows". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 10 February 2020. Retrieved 10 February 2020.
  4. ^ a b Li, Jane (6 February 2020). "Wuhan virus: Chinese citizen journalist reports from quarantine zone". Quartz. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  5. ^ Gan, Nectar; Thomas, Natalie (9 February 2020). "He spoke out about the Wuhan virus. Now his family and friends fear he's been silenced". CNN. Retrieved 10 February 2020.
  6. ^ Lew, Linda (15 February 2020). "Missing citizen journalists highlight coronavirus reporting risks". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  7. ^ a b "These Are the 10 'Most Urgent' Threats to Press Freedom Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic". Time. 1 April 2020. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  8. ^ Chen, Lulu Yilun (7 February 2020). "Citizen Journalist Covering Virus Outbreak From Wuhan Goes Missing". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on 7 February 2020. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  9. ^ Thomas, Natalie; Culver, David (8 February 2020). "Citizen journalist covering coronavirus forcibly quarantined by government in Wuhan, say friends". CNN. Retrieved 9 February 2020.
  10. ^ a b BBC Staff (14 February 2020). "Why have two reporters in Wuhan disappeared?". BBC News. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  11. ^ Kuo, Lily (1 March 2020). "'They're chasing me': the journalist who wouldn't stay quiet on Covid-19". The Observer. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  12. ^ "我正在被搜查！！！我正在被搜查！！！". YouTube. 26 February 2020. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  13. ^ Time Staff (2 March 2020). "Here Are the 10 'Most Urgent' Threats to Press Freedom Around the World". Time magazine. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  14. ^ Li, Jane (12 February 2020). "Another citizen journalist covering the coronavirus has gone missing in Wuhan". Yahoo Finance. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  15. ^ Kuo, Lily (2 April 2020). "'On the light side': Trump casts doubt on China's coronavirus figures". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  16. ^ "Missing Wuhan citizen journalist reappears after two months". the Guardian. 22 April 2020. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
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