Ji Sizun (纪斯尊, 1949–2019) was a Fujian rights advocate known as a “barefoot lawyer” who provided legal help to petitioners and people affected by land seizures and forced evictions.
Ji spent much of his final decade in prison. Human-rights reporting states that his health deteriorated substantially during his last sentence, including a stroke in 2018 and bowel surgery later that year. Requests for medical parole were denied. On April 26, 2019, after completing his sentence, he was transferred directly from Putian Prison to an intensive-care unit in Zhangzhou and remained under police guard.
He died on July 10, 2019. Reports say doctors described internal bleeding shortly before his death, but no independent medical investigation established a definitive cause. Human-rights groups called for an independent investigation into his hospitalization and death.
Related records
Person Profile: Ji Sizun
Media Profile & Archive: Ji Sizun