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About the Individual: Hada

In prison for defending cultural rights and
political participation for Mongols

[Image: Hada]
On this page:

Basic Information

Name Hada / 哈达
Date of birth November 29, 1955
Criminal detention December 10, 1995
Formal arrest March 9, 1996
Charge Incitement of espionage and separatism[1]
[Articles 92, 97, 51, 52, 64 of
the Criminal Law (1979)]
Sentence Fifteen years in prison and
four years' deprivation of political rights
Current location Unknown.[11b]

Last known location : Inner-Mongolian Autonomous Region (IMAR) Prison No. 4 [Chifeng [Ulanhad][2] Prison]
Date of release December 10, 2010[3][11b]


Overview: In Prison for Defending Cultural Rights and Political Participation for Mongols

Hada, 53, is a writer who owned a Mongolian studies bookshop in Hohhot in the Inner-Mongolian Autonomous Region (IMAR). He is married and has one son. Hada is currently serving the 12th year of a 15-year prison sentence. He has been tortured and treated poorly during his long imprisonment, and is reportedly in very poor health.[4]
“Hada was active for 27 years in defending indigenous Mongol culture and language...”

Hada was active for 27 years in defending indigenous Mongol culture and language and promoting political participation by Mongols. In 1992, he and fellow activist Tegexi[5] established what would later become the Southern Mongolian Democratic Alliance (SMDA). Due to their involvement with the group, Hada and Tegexi were both detained by the police in 1995 and tried in a closed hearing in 1996 on charges of "separatism" and "espionage."

Hada's family has been under constant surveillance and harassment, and requests to have him transferred to a prison closer to home, or to improve his living conditions, have been ignored.[6]
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Statement by Hada's wife, Xinna, on Charter 08

On January 3, 2009, Hada's wife, Xinna, issued a public statement on Charter 08. The Charter, an appeal to the Chinese government for political reform, was first released on December 9, 2008, bearing the names of 303 people. It circulated quickly and widely on the Internet. By January 10, 2009, some 7,200 people from all walks of life in China – including intellectuals, peasants, writers, journalists, workers, and businessmen – had signed with their real names.
“Charter 08 should not only serve to promote the rights of the Han majority, but also to protect the rights of the minorities.”

In her statement, Xinna laments the lack of general knowledge on how to exercise and protect legal rights in China, and praises the suggestions and demands set out in the Charter. Mongols in IMAR, she says, are afraid of voicing their opinions and demands; they dare not speak up even when their rights are violated for fear of retribution. Xinna states that the Charter should serve to promote not only the rights of Han Chinese but also those of the minorities, and appeals for the release of all political prisoners.

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Current Status: Torture, Ill-treatment, and
Denial of Basic Needs

“During his imprisonment, Hada has been routinely subjected to torture and ill-treatment.”

During his imprisonment, Hada has been routinely subjected to torture and ill-treatment. According to an account given to HRIC by a political prisoner who served time with Hada in Chifeng Prison, Hada has been routinely abused and brutalized, as well as subjected to disciplinary punishments that range from solitary confinement to being chained to a metal "shackle board"—a bare metal plank with handcuffs at each corner.[7] Prison officials have reportedly twice threatened his life by holding a gun to his head.[8]
“He has been denied necessary medical attention and regular contact with his family.”

Hada has been denied the liberties generally afforded to other prisoners in Chifeng Prison. He has been denied necessary medical attention and regular contact with his family.[9] According to his son, Uiles, Hada is monitored by two people during the day, and inmates are not allowed to speak to him.[10] Moreover, prison officials have shocked him using electric rods. When Uiles visited Hada in August 2007, prison authorities denied his request to switch his father's worn and dirty mattress for a new one that Uiles had brought for him. Hada has also not been allowed to buy items through the prison purchase system, such as instant noodles and other supplies, as is generally permitted for other prisoners.[11]

Although Hada was released from prison in December 2010, as of July 2011 he has been held in a detention center.[11b]

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Relevant UN and Other Official Statements

  • United Nations: The horrific conditions for Hada in Chifeng Prison, including beatings and torture, were documented by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment in a report in 2002.[12] In 2006, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on the situation of human rights defenders, together with the Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, and the Special Rapporteur on the question of torture, sent an urgent appeal (para. 81) to the Chinese government on Hada's behalf.[13]

  • European Parliament: The European Parliament adopted a resolution on the IMAR in 1997, asking that the Chinese government reopen the trial of Hada and other arrested activists of the SMDA "in the presence of international observers."[14]
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Hada's Story

In this section:
Hada, 53, is a Mongol, born in Horchin Right Wing Front Banner on November 29, 1955.[15] He is married to a fellow Mongol, Xinna, and they have one son, Uiles.

Cultural promotion

As an undergraduate student of Mongolian language and literature, Hada became active in the growing Mongolian cultural preservation movement in the IMAR. After graduating from university in 1983, Hada published a number of articles in the Mongolian language on political theory.
“Hada became active in the growing Mongolian cultural preservation movement...”

Hada later received master's degrees in politics and philosophy, and continued to devote his time to the promotion of Mongolian culture, opening a Mongolian studies bookstore in the IMAR capital, Hohhot, with Xinna.[16] The bookstore was recognized by official media as an effort to preserve and promote Mongolian culture, being referred to by Guangming Daily in December 1995, after Hada's arrest, as "the home of Mongolian culture."[17]

Political activism

Hada has been involved with independent Mongolian organizations promoting the culture, language, and religion of Mongols, as well as political participation for Mongols, for 27 years.[18] In 1992, he formed what would later become the Southern Mongolian Democratic Alliance (SMDA) with fellow activist Tegexi, penning its operating principles and constitution himself.[19] SMDA later set out its main mission as "opposing colonization by the Han people and striving for self-determination, freedom and democracy in Southern Mongolia."[20]
“Hada's articles, which would eventually serve as the basis for the charges against him, were primarily on the goals of SMDA, namely, self-determination, freedom, and democracy in IMAR.”
Hada wrote for the independent SMDA publication The Voice of Southern Mongolia (南蒙之声) and also wrote the book The Way Out for Inner Mongolia (内蒙古之出路). His articles, which would eventually serve as the basis for the charges against him, were primarily on the goals of SMDA, namely, self-determination, freedom, and democracy in IMAR. In 1995, the SMDA and Hada organized several peaceful demonstrations in Hohhot, demanding that the authorities recognize and respect the rights of Mongols.[21]

Detention and arrest

Hada's family home was ransacked by the police on December 10, 1995. Documents related to the SMDA, as well as contact lists of SMDA members and international scholars with whom Hada had been corresponding, were confiscated. The following day, Hada was detained, and on March 9, 1996, he was formally arrested.[22]
“The Hohhot People's Procuratorate formally charged Hada...with "espionage," "separatism" and "organizing counterrevolutionary forces."”

The Hohhot People's Procuratorate formally charged Hada on July 30, 1996, with "espionage," "separatism" and "organizing counterrevolutionary forces." Following a closed hearing, the Hohhot Intermediate People's Court sentenced Hada on November 11, 1996, to 15 years in prison for separatism and espionage, with four years' subsequent deprivation of political rights. Hada's appeal to the Inner Mongolia Supreme People's Court was rejected on December 26, 1996.

Family hardship

On December 16, 1995, Hada's wife Xinna posted a note on the front door of their bookstore informing people that Hada had been detained and that fellow activists had been detained or harassed. When students protested the detentions and harassment, Xinna was taken into custody and investigated for "inciting students to cause a disturbance."

Xinna was released on bail on January 12, 1996, but detained again on January 28, 1996, after giving an interview to an overseas journalist. Although never formally charged, Xinna was not released until nearly four months later, on April 12. The Public Security Bureau closed down the bookstore in Hohhot, leaving the family with no source of income.

Hada's son, Uiles, was sentenced to two years'[23] imprisonment in 2002 on robbery charges.[24] The Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center reported that, prior to his arrest, Uiles was harassed and beaten by police. Uiles was released on December 18, 2003.[25]

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Hada's Case: Court and Other Documents
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HRIC Advocacy and Media Work on Hada

Below is a listing of HRIC advocacy and media work on Hada, including press release, statements, and case updates. To subscribe to HRIC's press list, please e-mail communications@hrichina.org with "SUBSCRIBE" as the subject heading.

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Other Examples of Banned Mongolian Publications


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Updated News Articles

The Human Rights in China (HRIC) Daily News Brief is a daily compilation of selected human rights-related news covered in local and regional Chinese and English press compiled by HRIC's research office. Visit the Daily News Brief for recent news articles on Hada.


//

ENDNOTES

[1] The crime of separatism was eliminated from the revised Criminal Law in 1997, but individuals convicted of this crime will remain in prison until the completion of their sentence. No reviews were conducted, however, despite precedents to do so in similar circumstances both in China and elsewhere.

[2] United Nations Economic and Social Council: Distr. General E/CN.4/2004/56/Add.1: Commissions on Human Rights: Sixtieth session, Item 11 (a) of the provisional agenda: Civil and Political Rights, Including the Questions of: Torture and Detention: Torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Report of the Special Rapporteur, Theo van Boven. Available at http://ap.ohchr.org/documents/dpage_e.aspx?si=E/CN.4/2004/56/Add.1.

[3] http://www.free-hada-now.org/images/court_notice.jpg.

[4] Human Rights in China, "Political Prisoner Hada Suffers Torture in Prison," December 20, 2004, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/19284.

[5] Additional information on his case can be found at the website of the Southern Mongolian Human Rights and Information Center, http://www.smhric.org.

[6] Human Rights in China, "Case Profiles: Hada," April 16, 2001, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/2541; Human Rights in China, "Political Prisoner Hada Suffers Torture in Prison," December 20, 2004, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/19284.

[7] Human Rights in China, "Political Prisoner Hada Suffers Torture in Prison," December 20, 2004, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/19284.

[8] United Nations Economic and Social Council: Distr. General E/CN.4/2002/76/Add.1: Commission on Human Rights: Fifty-eighth session, Item 11 of the provisional agenda: Question of the Human Rights of All Persons Subjected to Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment, in Particular: Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Report of the Special Rapporteur, Sir Nigel Rodley, submitted pursuant to Commission on Human Rights resolution 2001/62, Addendum: Summary of cases transmitted to Governments and replies received. Available at http://ap.ohchr.org/documents/dpage_e.aspx?si=E/CN.4/2002/76/Add.1.

[9] United Nations Economic and Social Council: Distr. General E/CN.4/2006/95/Add.1: Commission on Human Rights: Sixty-second session, Agenda item 17 (b) of the provisional agenda: Promotion and Protection of Human Rights: Human Rights Defenders: Report of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Hina Jilani, Addendum: Summary of cases transmitted to Governments and replies received. Available at http://ap.ohchr.org/documents/dpage_e.aspx?si=E/CN.4/2006/95/Add.1.

[10] "Hada in Prison: A Visitation Report from His Son, Uiles," China Rights Forum, 2007, no. 4, http://hrichina.org/public/PDFs/CRF.4.2007/CRF-2007-4_Hada.pdf.

[11] Ibid.

[11b] Gao Shan and Luisetta Mudie, "Ethnic Mongol Activist, Family Held," Radio Free Asia, July 11, 2011, http://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/held-07112011133648.html.

[12] "United Nations Economic and Social Council: Distr. General E/CN.4/2002/76/Add.1: Commission on Human Rights: Fifty-eighth session, Item 11 of the provisional agenda: Question of the Human Rights of All Persons Subjected to Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment, in Particular: Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Report of the Special Rapporteur, Sir Nigel Rodley, submitted pursuant to Commission on Human Rights resolution 2001/62, Addendum: Summary of cases transmitted to Governments and replies received", p38. http://www.unhchr.ch/Huridocda/Huridoca.nsf/0/9c7af31ada5f6d62c1256ba700409b01/$FILE/G0211402.pdf.

[13] United Nations Economic and Social Council: Distr. General E/CN.4/2006/95/Add.1: Commission on Human Rights: Sixty-second session, Agenda item 17 (b) of the provisional agenda: Promotion and Protection of Human Rights: Human Rights Defenders: Report of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Hina Jilani, Addendum: Summary of cases transmitted to Governments and replies received, p56. Available at http://ap.ohchr.org/documents/dpage_e.aspx?si=E/CN.4/2006/95/Add.1.

[14] "An European Parliament Resolution on Inner Mongolia," http://www.smhric.org/Hada/Hada_7.htm.

[15] Southern Mongolian Human Rights Center, "Biography of Hada," http://www.smhric.org/Hada/Hada_1.htm.

[16] Human Rights in China, "Political Prisoner Hada Suffers Torture in Prison," December 20, 2004, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/19284.

[17] Human Rights in China, "Case Profiles: Hada," April 16, 2001, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/2541.

[18] Ibid.

[19] Ibid.

[20] Human Rights in China, "Political Prisoner Hada Suffers Torture in Prison," December 20, 2004, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/19284.

[21] United Nations Economic and Social Council: Distr. General E/CN.4/2006/95/Add.1: Commission on Human Rights: Sixty-second session, Agenda item 17 (b) of the provisional agenda: Promotion and Protection of Human Rights: Human Rights Defenders: Report of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Hina Jilani, Addendum: Summary of cases transmitted to Governments and replies received. Available at http://ap.ohchr.org/documents/dpage_e.aspx?si=E/CN.4/2006/95/Add.1.

[22] Human Rights in China, "Case Profiles: Hada," April 16, 2001, http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/2541.

[23] "Inner Mongolian Dissident's wife reports brutal treatment of her imprisoned son," Radio Free Asia, September 25, 2002, http://www.smhric.org/news_9.htm.

[24] Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center, "Southern Mongolia / China: Persecutions of the Wife and the son of Mr. Hada, Detained Leader of the Democratic Alliance. Question to the European Commission," October 4, 2002, http://www.smhric.org/news_10.htm.

[25] http://www.free-hada-now.org/images/court_decision_2.jpg.

[26] United Nations Economic and Social Council: Distr. General E/CN.4/2005/NGO/155: Commission on Human Rights: Sixty-first session, Item 9 of the provisional agenda: Question of the Violation of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms in Any Part of the World: Written statement submitted by the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), a non-governmental organization with special consultative status. Available at http://ap.ohchr.org/documents/dpage_e.aspx?si=E/cn.4/2005/NGO/155.
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