A House Democrat is urging the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to release a Chinese human rights lawyer who has now spent his fifth birthday in prison. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) took to X on Aug. 17 to highlight Ding Jiaxi’s birthday and express his commitment to securing Ding’s release.
Ding, 56, is a human rights lawyer and prominent figure in the New Citizens Movement. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison by a Chinese court in April last year. The movement advocates for transparency regarding the wealth of CCP officials, civil rights promotion, and the peaceful transition of China to constitutionalism.
Ding was detained after attending a private gathering in Xiamen, where he discussed civil society and political reforms with like-minded individuals back in December 2019. In June 2022, Ding stood trial behind closed doors alongside another human rights lawyer named Xu Zhiyong, who received a 14-year prison sentence.
China consistently ranks as one of the world’s worst offenders when it comes to civil liberties violations. According to Freedom House’s annual report on China for 2024, the country lacks an independent judiciary as judges are expected to conform to CCP ideology and prioritize party supremacy over judicial principles.
Rep. Schiff previously issued a statement criticizing the CCP for unjustly punishing Xu with baseless charges ahead of his birthday. He emphasized that Xu is being punished for advocating on behalf of others and defending human rights.
As Ding Jiaxi spends yet another birthday behind bars, Rep. Schiff joins his wife Sophie Luo and freedom-loving people worldwide in calling for his release from imprisonment under China’s repressive regime.
Luo expressed concerns about her husband’s well-being ahead of his birthday celebration, particularly due to previous instances of torture he endured while detained. She also highlighted how he is denied exercise outside his cell despite every prisoner having that right according to Luo.
During a congressional hearing last year, Luo detailed her husband’s experience with torture and ill-treatment while detained—such as prolonged sleep deprivation, interrogation while restrained by a device called the “tiger chair,” food and water restrictions, and denial of access to showers.
Luo moved with their two daughters from China to the United States after Ding was first detained in 2013 but has been unable to speak with him since he was arrested again in 2019.
In recent weeks, Congress has also focused attention on other