His Excellency President Hu Jintao

Beijing 100032

People’s Republic of China

C/o Permanent Representative to UN

Email: china@un.int

30 September 2003

Your Excellency,

We are writing on behalf of the World Association of Newspapers and the World Editors Forum, which represent 18,000 publications in 100 countries, to

express our serious concern at the detention and prosecution of cyber-dissident Li Zhi.

According to reports, on 3 September Mr Li, a civil servant who was arrested at his home in Dazhou, Sichuan province, on 8 August, was formally charged with "plotting against the state" for having criticised the government online and having been in contact with foreign-based dissidents via the Internet. He faces a 15-year prison sentence if convicted.

We are seriously concerned that Mr Li is being targeted as part of a broader government crackdown against online freedom of expression. Three harsh laws

governing the use of the Internet were adopted in 2000 and dozens of cyber-dissidents are currently imprisoned for having expressed their opinions online.

We respectfully remind you that the jailing of Mr Li constitutes a clear breach of his right to freedom of expression, which is guaranteed by numerous international conventions, including Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Furthermore, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights considers that: "Detention, as punishment for the peaceful expression of an opinion, is one of the most reprehensible ways to enjoin silence and, as a consequence, a grave violation of human rights."

We respectfully call on you to do everything possible to ensure that Mr Li and all others held for exercising their right to freedom of expression are immediately released from jail. We urge you to take all necessary steps to ensure that in future your country fully respects international standards of freedom of expression.

We look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience.

Yours sincerely,

Seok Hyun Hong

President

World Association of Newspapers

Gloria Brown Anderson

President

World Editors Forum

cc : Mr Kofi Annan, Secretary-General, United Nations