China activist sentenced for 'subversion'

SUINING, China, Dec. 23 (UPI) -- A Chinese dissident who wrote online essays calling for freedom of speech and political reform was sentenced to nine years in prison for "inciting subversion."

A court in Suining in southwestern China's Sichuan province sentenced veteran rights activist Chen Wei, 42, Friday, imposing one of the most severe penalties against a Chinese dissident this year, CNN reported.

Chen had been detained since February after he wrote essays for foreign Web sites that mentioned the 1989 Tiananmen protests and called for freedom of speech, democracy and political reform.

"Everyone has opinions, but he was brave enough to express his openly and was punished for it," Wang Xiaoyan, Chen's wife, told CNN. "I feel no sadness, just pure anger at how this all played out."

She said he had been brought in for questioning often because of his participation in the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests.

"The court and government officials decided he was guilty even before the trial started," Wang said.

The court found Chen guilty of "inciting subversion of state power," the BBC reported.

"I'm not planning to overthrow any regime," Chen said during the closed trial, which lasted more than 2 hours. "I'm seeking for democracy through non-violent means."

Chen was among hundreds of Chinese dissidents detained this year after online calls for protest in China inspired by the Arab Spring uprisings in the Middle East.