73rd birthday still serving 13 years in prison: Qin Yong Ming from the Wall of Democracy to "Rose China", four sentences left 35 years in political prison

The Wuhan Democratic Wall in 1978.

Qin Yong-min participated in the founding of civil journals and began publicly promoting democratic reforms.

He was arrested in 1981.

In March 1982, the court sentenced Qin Yongmin to eight years in prison for the "crime of counter-revolutionary propaganda incitement" at the time.

This is the first long term imprisonment.

In 1993, Qin Yongmin participated in drafting the Peace Charter, again under pressure from the authorities, and was educated by labor for two years.

In 1998, he participated in the preparations for the establishment of the Hubei Party of the Chinese Democratic Party.In November of that year, Qin Yongmin was arrested again and sentenced to 12 years in prison by a middle-level people's court in Wuhan City for "crimes of subversion of the state regime."

Punishment in 2010.

This is the second long political prison.

After his release from prison, Qin Yong-min did not stop his activities, promoting the establishment of China Human Rights Watch and the establishment of the Rose China network platform, advocating non-violent political reform and continuing to publish articles on human rights and democratic systems.

In January 2015, he lost his freedom again.

In July 2018, the middle-level people's court in Wuhan City sentenced Qin Yongmin to 13 years in prison for "crimes of subversion of state power" and deprived him of political rights for 3 years.

The courts do not deal with violent attacks, armed groups or terrorist acts, but with political organizations, articles, public initiatives and civil society activities.

On August 11, Qin Yongmin was 73 years old.

According to the current sentence, he will continue to serve until 2028.

From the age of 25 to 73, Qin Yong Ming's personal time line almost overlap with the political history of the People's Republic of China after the reform and opening up. He experienced the "crime of counter-revolutionary propaganda incitement", also experienced the "crime of subversion of state power" that later replaced this political crime system; experienced the system of labor education, and also experienced the criminal justice of national security.

Crimes have changed, but the logic of power to deal with political disagreements has left a high degree of continuity.

According to public information statistics, Qin Yong Ming was sentenced four times, with a cumulative sentence of about 35 years, and had a large number of detention, surveillance and restriction of liberty experience.

The Qin Yong-min case is worthy of record, as it reveals the most easily covered by time portion of the Chinese political prisoners issue.

An arrest becomes a news.

A sentence is a news.

But 13 years of imprisonment meant thousands of ordinary days without news: Birthdays, Spring Festivals, elderly loved ones, and social changes, all going on outside prison walls.

The heaviest part of the political persecution is hidden precisely in these untitled times.

August 11 is Qin Yongmin’s 73th birthday.

It is also a record that the Chinese regime has to face again: a Chinese citizen who has been demanding democracy and human rights since the 1970s, is still imprisoned for political expression half a century later.