Ni Yulan
An independent jury has awarded the 2011 Human Rights Defenders Tulip to the Chinese human rights activist Ni Yulan. The announcement of the award was delayed at the request of Ms Ni’s family in the interest of her safety. The activist is currently in custody awaiting trial.
Rights activist Ni Yulan 'barred from leaving' China
If we don't fight for rights, we will just have to wait for our death.
Ni Yulan is a Chinese human rights defender and civil rights attorney. She began practicing law in 1986, and established herself in the field of human rights lawyering by defending marginalized groups such as Falun Gong practitioners and victims of forced eviction. She has been jailed numerous times and with her husband has faced ongoing harassment and intimidation. In 2011, Ni Yulan was awarded the Human Rights Defender Tulip award by the government of the Netherlands in recognition of her work.
Chinese HRDs face intimidation, harassment, house arrest, abductions, torture and imprisonment. They also work under very restrictive legislation, including laws which criminalize all unauthorized demonstrations and require government sponsorship for NGO registration, which is refused to any organisation touching on human rights issues. Widescale investigations into NGOs with links to overseas organisations took place in 2014 and 2015 resulting in harassment, detentions and forced closures.
