Beijing: Chinese citizen-journalist Zhang Zhan, who gained international attention for documenting the early days of the COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan, has been sentenced to an additional four years in prison, according to rights groups.
The 42-year-old former lawyer was convicted on charges of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” a broadly used legal provision often applied to silence dissidents and independent voices in China. This marks Zhang’s second prison sentence. She was initially jailed in December 2020 for four years after posting first-hand reports and videos from Wuhan that contradicted official accounts of the pandemic’s onset.
Zhang was released in May 2024 but re-arrested three months later in Shanghai. Since then, she has been held at Pudong Detention Center, where her health has raised concern due to previous hunger strikes during her first imprisonment. Rights groups say the latest sentencing is linked to her comments posted on overseas platforms.
Press freedom advocates condemned the ruling, calling it a deliberate attempt to silence independent reporting. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) described Zhang as an “information hero” who should be honored for her journalism rather than imprisoned. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) also demanded her immediate release, warning that the sentence sends a chilling message to those seeking to expose the truth in China.
China’s Foreign Ministry has not issued a statement regarding the new sentencing.
The case highlights the country’s continued suppression of citizen journalists and whistleblowers. China ranks 178th out of 180 countries in the 2025 RSF World Press Freedom Index, underscoring its restrictive environment for media and free expression.
The sentencing comes just a week after China’s legislature passed a new law to strengthen public health emergency responses, which includes provisions allowing citizens to report emergencies directly. Critics note the contradiction between this legal reform and the punishment of Zhang, who was jailed precisely for reporting on a public health crisis.
Rights groups warn that the ruling against Zhang will discourage independent reporting within China and deepen concerns about the government’s handling of information during emergencies.