Open Constitution Initiative (Gongmeng) Founder Xu Zhiyong and Assistant Zhuang Lu Freed on Bail

By chinafreepress.org (translation)
Aug 23, 2009 – 6:33:39 AM

Activist lawyer Xu Zhiyong was released Sunday August 23, but said he still may face tax charges.

Xu Zhiyong, co-founder of Beijing legal aid group Open Constitution Initiative (Gongmeng) was detained July 29 and formally arrested Aug. 12 on charges of evading taxes.

Xu has been at the forefront of legal reform and public interest law in China, and has been a visiting scholar in the United States several times.

He said he did not know whether authorities would proceed with a tax evasion case against his group, Gongmeng, or the Open Constitution Initiative.

His lawyer, Zhou Ze, said the case has yet to be sent to prosecutors.

Beijing is cracking down on all possible sources of dissent ahead of the Communist Party’s 60th anniversary celebration on October 1.

In July, the government revoked the licenses of 53 lawyers in Beijing, many of them known for handling human rights and other sensitive cases.

Gongmeng was shut down in mid-July, and the Beijing tax bureau fined it 1.4 million yuan ($206,000) for failing to pay taxes.

Zhou said the case might involve accusations of failing to pay up to 200,000 yuan ($29,000) in taxes, but he said authorities have given no details.

Full Chinese report:
http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2009/08/200908232020.shtml