Prison term for Chinese petition organizer

I recieved the following newspaper article in the mail.

By Richard Spencer

Beijing - A disgruntled factory worker who organized an online petition against illegal land seizures in China headed "We want human rights not the Olympics" was jailed for five years yesterday.

In a sign the Chinese authorities were in no mood to appease critics of their human rights record, even in the run- Yang Chunlin's sentence was the maximum for the charge of subverting the power of the state. Yang, 54, was hit with electric batons as his family scuffled with police after the hearing, said his lawyer, Li Fangping.

"Both the family and us lawyers think it is a heavy sentence, as five years in prison is the highest sentence possible in this case," he added.

The former factory worker was one of thousands of people from all over China who have protested against what they say is illegal seizure of farmland for development in recent years.

He organized a petition of 10,000 names against the activities of local officials. Linking the issue to the Olympics won him extra publicity but also seems to have aggravated the local authorities' reaction.

Yang claims he is innocent and he was exercising his right to free speech, which is theoretically guaranteed in the Chinese constitution. His sister, Yang Chunping, says while he was in custody he was tortured by having his arms and legs stretched, and then chained to the corners of his bed.

Yeah, hope you all enjoy the Olympics. Go Canada!