Wu Gan detained for inciting trouble, 'vulgar' behavior called 'illegal'
Chinese State media on Thursday accused an online activist of viciously plotting "performance art" to attack the government, as the government continues cracking down on illegal online activities that masquerade as rights protection.
Activist Wu Gan earned the nickname "Butcher" in 2009 when he called for netizens to donate to Deng Yujiao, a waitress from Hubei Province who stabbed a local official to death due to his sexual taunts, according to the Xinhua News Agency.
"He has since been seen in various social issues with his vulgar performances. He later got bolder, resorting to illegal measures to maliciously attack the government, which he boasts are 'performance art,'" People's Daily reported.
Xinhua went on listing examples of Wu's "performance art." In a land acquisition case in 2012, Wu posted pictures of himself making dirty gestures with a naked female mannequin whose face bore the photo of a female official of Fujian Province, as a way to humiliate and put pressure on local authorities.
Wu has pressured authorities with so-called bounty hunts, in which he offers money for dirt on officials, knowing that they fear trouble and media hype, according to Xinhua. The agency quoted Wu as previously saying that "the biggest fear of officials is losing their job, so we can target their weakness."
Wu recently offered a 100,000 yuan ($16,000) reward for the surveillance video of the police shooting in Qing'an, Heilongjiang Province, where a man who attacked the police at the local railway station was killed, according to The Beijing News.
"People like Wu often seek profits for themselves illegally in the name of justice and safeguarding legal rights. It has been a clear signal since late 2013 that China is determined to crack down on such illegal activities to build a clean and healthy online society," Zhi Zhenfeng, an associate research fellow at the Institute of Law, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times.
Zhi compared Wu to Dong Liangjie, an environmentalist, who was detained for spreading forged information online in 2013, and Yang Xiuyu, who was sentenced to four years in prison for illegal business practices, including making profits by posting false information.
However, Yu Guoming, a professor at the Renmin University of China, pointed out that Wu and other activists serve to drive the authorities to conduct investigations and improve transparency.
Wu was detained by Fujian police on Wednesday for inciting trouble and libel. He was previously under administrative detention in Jiangxi Province for disturbing order at courts and publicly insulting others, after he put up posters with insulting accusations against the leaders of the Jiangxi high court.
"Apart from imposing punishment on Wu for his extreme and vulgar activities, authorities must reflect on themselves to find the root of the problem - administrative nonfeasance and the lack of transparency in some government bodies still lay as obstacle for people to safeguard their rights," Xie Zhiyong, a professor at the China University of Political Science and Law, told the Global Times.
