* Chen Longde, 39, a former factory worker, was sentenced on 2 July 1996 to three years' RTL on charges of "endangering state security". Chen was detained in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, on 28 May 1996 after he helped draft "An Open Letter to the NPC on the 7th Anniversary of June Fourth" calling for an official reassessment of the 1989 democracy movement, decrying rampant institutional corruption and demanding the release of political and religious prisoners. On August 17, 1996, shortly after he was sent to Luoshan Labor Camp, Chen leapt from a window to escape torture and beatings. A police officer admitted to Chen's father that he and a group of other officers had beaten Chen Longde with electric batons and clubs in an attempt to force him to write a confession, and had encouraged Chen Longde's fellow inmates to do the same, stating that by beating up a "counter-revolutionary" element they could have their sentences reduced. Sustaining two broken hips and a broken leg in his fall, Chen was moved to Hangzh

ou Qingchun Hospital, a police facility. On December 1 he was returned to prison. Although he still cannot walk, he must put in the required work hours at tasks which he can do while sitting. He is sharing a cell with twelve prisoners and is receiving no further medical treatment. Chen Longde is reportedly also suffering from bronchitis and kidney stones. On May 27, 1995, the police arrested Chen Longde in the Hangzhou home of fellow activist Wang Donghai as they were drafting a petition. He was released later in May on condition that he would not speak out around June 4. Chen Longde spent four weeks in detention without charge from 14 December 1995 to 12 January 1996 for signing an open letter which called for the release of Wei Jingsheng. He served a three-year sentence for "counterrevolutionary propaganda," after he printed and distributed handbills during the 1989 pro-democracy movement. (Sources: Human Rights in China - New York)