Supporters of Xia Lin from both China and abroad, cried foul upon hearing the decision of the Beijing court on Thursday. They say that the decision is a move designed to silence the lawyer and intimidate other human rights lawyers by making an example out of him. They had reservations about the plausibility of the accusation which they say was more intended as a smear campaign against Lin.
Xia Lin, the lawyer known for specializing in ultra-sensitive human rights cases such as the one involving Chinese Contemporary artist and activist Ai Weiwei, fellow lawyer Pu Zhiqiang, and activist Guo Yushan, was found guilty of acquiring around $700,000 in order to pay off gambling debts, the amount by the way, is less than half the amount declared in the initial accusation that led to his detention in 2014 while he was defending activist Guo Yushan.
The seemingly unfair punishment brought upon the lawyer was condemned by legal experts and human rights activists from all over the world and that the accusation which seemed to be aimed at destroying his credibility prior to the trial is a tactic commonly used in many politically-charged trials.
Maya Wang, Asia researcher at Human Rights Watch, told AFP: "The sentence is shocking, not only because of its length, but also because it was handed down to a rights lawyer who has tried to protect himself by deliberately taking a low-profile, technical approach to his work."
William Nee, a researcher with Amnesty International believes that the punishment is "shockingly harsh," and hides the true intention of the government which is a means to suppress lawyers willing to take up political cases. What makes the sentence unfair according to Nee is the fact that most lawyers that were detained were suddenly were released or given light sentences.
"Those who have refused to cooperate and admit their guilt are still awaiting trial, and among them, Xia Lin is the first to be sentenced. Such a harsh sentence could be meant to send a message to those who have still refused to cooperate in spite of the enormous pressure that has been put on them an their families," Nee told Al Jazeera.
Xia Lin was a Tiananmen Square protester back in 1989. With an aspiration of helping China become a more humane society, he decided to become a lawyer.
