BEIJING (Kyodo) -- Prominent Chinese democracy activist Xu Zhiyong, who appealed for the realization of constitutional government in China, has been arrested by public security authorities on the charge of "inciting subversion of state power," it was learned Wednesday.
According to the people involved, the family received a written notification on Tuesday that Xu was arrested on June 19 in Linyi City, Shandong Province.
Until now, the authorities have detained many human rights lawyers and activists, including Xu, who participated in a rally held in Xiamen, Fujian Province, last December to discuss national politics, such as the situation in Hong Kong.
Of these, human rights lawyer Ding Jiaxi was also arrested by the public security authorities of Linyi on the same charges on the same day.
Xu, a central figure in the New Citizens' Movement that calls for the realization of constitutional government, was sentenced to prison in 2014 and served a four-year stint in prison for gathering crowds to disrupt public order.
