FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 24, 2026
Free China Movement (FCM)
As Xi Meets President Trump, Free China Movement Calls on Beijing to Respect Civil and Political Rights
WASHINGTON — As Chinese leader Xi Jinping meets U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House today, the Free China Movement (FCM) calls on authorities in the People’s Republic of China to respect internationally recognized civil and political rights and to address the reported formal arrest of veteran rights defender Chen Yunfei (陈云飞).
Rights Campaign / China Human Rights Service Center reported on September 23 that Chengdu’s Wenjiang District police had formally arrested Chen on suspicion of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble.” According to the report, Chen’s family learned of the arrest from state-security personnel but had not yet received a written arrest notice. ChinaAid separately reported that authorities had not publicly disclosed the specific conduct alleged to constitute the offense.
Reuters reported that President Trump welcomed Xi to Washington on September 24 for a White House summit, their second meeting this year.
“High-level diplomacy should be accompanied by respect for the fundamental rights of people at home. We respectfully encourage President Trump to raise the treatment of peaceful activists, religious believers, rights defenders and prisoners of conscience in his discussions with Xi Jinping. We also call on Beijing to provide transparent legal process in Chen Yunfei’s case and to release him if authorities cannot demonstrate conduct constituting a recognizable criminal offense.”
FCM calls for specific steps
- Disclose Chen Yunfei’s place of detention and the factual and legal basis for his arrest.
- Provide his family with the legally required written documentation without delay.
- Ensure timely access to legal counsel and the protections of due process.
- Refrain from using broadly framed public-order offenses to punish peaceful expression, religious practice, association or advocacy.
- Respect the freedoms of expression, religion, peaceful assembly and association reflected in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
- Advance ratification and implementation of the ICCPR.
China’s ICCPR commitment
China signed the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights on October 5, 1998, but has not ratified it. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has repeatedly noted that, as a signatory, China is obliged under Article 18 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties to refrain from acts that would defeat the object and purpose of the Covenant prior to its entry into force for China.
FCM believes today’s U.S.–China summit provides an opportunity for direct discussion of these documented concerns while maintaining respectful diplomatic engagement between the two countries.
Related FreeChina.live report: Chen Yunfei Formally Arrested in Chengdu as Xi Meets President Trump in Washington
Sources
- Rights Campaign / China Human Rights Service Center, Sept. 23, 2026
- ChinaAid, Sept. 23, 2026
- Reuters, Sept. 24, 2026
- UN OHCHR communication on China and the ICCPR
About the Free China Movement
The Free China Movement (FCM) documents human-rights cases, democratic advocacy and public-policy proposals concerning mainland China and the broader future of a free China.