One day after it was anticipated that a Chinese citizen journalist serving a four-year term for her coverage of the early stages of the Covid-19 outbreak would be released, her whereabouts remain unknown.
Zhang Zhan’s supporters claim they are unsure if she has been set free, despite rights organizations’ predictions that officials would likely remain silent about her situation.
The forty-year-old ex-lawyer is among a number of activists who have encountered difficulties from Chinese authorities as a result of their reporting on COVID-19. While some have vanished, others have been placed under arrest.
“Picking quarrels and provoking trouble” is a common charge against activists in China, and she was found guilty of it.
Human rights organizations and media watchdogs have claimed that Ms. Zhang had been unfairly charged.
