Trial begins for Chinese human rights lawyer

China on Wednesday started the closed-door trial of Wang Quanzhang, one of the country’s most prominent human rights lawyers.

Plainclothes police cordoned off the front of the Tianjin No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court to prevent anyone from entering. Authorities also detained at least five people who turned up to support him, including his sister, Wang Quanxiu.

Wang was among some 300 lawyers and activists detained in 2015 as part of the so-called 709 crackdown, known for the date it began on July 9. His case is one of the last among the group. According to the indictment, authorities accused him of state subversion by conspiring with a foreign nonprofit to organize training for Chinese lawyers and for representing members of the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement. The court said in a statement that it “lawfully decided not to make public” the hearings since they involved state secrets.

Wang also notably taught Chinese villagers about their land and legal rights and helped found the Chinese Urgent Action Working Group. His wife, Li Wenzu, said more than a dozen security guards arrived at her apartment in Beijing to prevent her from traveling for the hearing.