Make that 101: Chinese Filmmaker Does Documentary On China’s 100-Year Struggle For Constitutional Rule . . . China Sentences Him To One Year In Jail

The Chinese government again proved that little has changed in the People’s Republic in the denial of basic civil liberties and human rights. Filmmaker Shen Yongping has become the latest and more poignant example of the totalitarian regime’s continued crackdown on free speech. Shen produced a documentary on the 100-year struggle of the Chinese for constitutional government. Chinese officials responded by arresting him and now sentencing him to a year in jail. It appears that a sequel is in the making.

The Chaoyang District Court in Beijing found Shen Yongping guilty of running an illegal business on the basis of his not obtaining permission to film the documentary, which of course would not be granted. Here is the indictment. However, his lawyer said that the charge is baseless since he had released the film online for free and did not profit from it.

Shen, who is in his early 30s, was detained as soon as he finished his eight-part series that traces the struggle for constitutional rule from the last days of the imperial Qing Dynasty. Chinese authorities repeatedly warned him that such publications are strictly forbidden and the YouTube film is blocked in China.

Here is the documentary on YouTube:

Source: Washington Post