Free China Movement

Evidence · Human Rights · Democratic Future

Take Action

English 简体中文 繁體中文 Français Deutsch Español

🔎

Wu Gan (吴淦) — “Super Vulgar Butcher”, rights activist sentenced in the 709 crackdown

Wu Gan (吴淦) — “Super Vulgar Butcher”, rights activist sentenced in the 709 crackdown

Status: Released on 18 May 2023 after serving a full eight-year sentence. He is reported to be living in Xiamen, Fujian, under a five-year deprivation of political rights, expected to run until about May 2028. Status as of 17 October 2026. Sources: CHRD; Dui Hua; Human Rights in China (July 2025).

Summary

Wu Gan (吴淦), known online as “Super Vulgar Butcher” (超级低俗屠夫) or “The Butcher” (屠夫), is a grassroots rights activist from Fuqing, Fujian, in the PRC (Mainland). He became known for pairing online campaigns with satirical street protests in support of victims of alleged official abuse. He was detained in May 2015, weeks before the nationwide “709” crackdown on rights lawyers. On 26 December 2017 the Tianjin No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court convicted him of “subversion of state power” and sentenced him to eight years in prison plus five years’ deprivation of political rights. It was the longest prison term handed down in the crackdown. He was released on 18 May 2023.

Background

According to Chinese Human Rights Defenders, Wu was born on 14 February 1972. He is a military veteran who worked for more than ten years as a security officer at Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport before resigning in 2008. From 2009 he drew national attention by campaigning online in high-profile cases, including that of Deng Yujiao. He later became involved in the Qian Yunhui case, the Xia Junfeng case and the May 2015 police shooting of petitioner Xu Chunhe at Qing’an railway station. His methods included protest banners, mock “wanted” posters of officials, and performance pieces meant to shame officials he accused of wrongdoing. In spring 2015 he worked as an administrative assistant at Beijing Fengrui Law Firm, which became a main target of the 709 crackdown. He was not a licensed lawyer.

Case timeline

  • May 2015: Joins a protest outside the Jiangxi High People’s Court in Nanchang in support of lawyers seeking case files in the “Leping” death-penalty case. Police in Nanchang give him 10 days’ administrative detention (CHRD; Amnesty).
  • 27 May 2015: Fujian police criminally detain him on suspicion of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” and “defamation” (CHRD; Dui Hua).
  • 3 July 2015: The Xiamen procuratorate approves his formal arrest for “inciting subversion of state power” and “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” (CHRD; Amnesty).
  • January 2016: His case is transferred to Tianjin, where other 709 detainees are held. The suspected charge is later raised to “subversion of state power” (CHRD).
  • 9 December 2016: He meets his lawyers for the first time, about 19 months into detention. He reports pressure to confess and the lawyers file a mistreatment complaint (CHRD).
  • 14 August 2017: Closed one-day trial at the Tianjin No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court. In a pre-trial statement he denies guilt and alleges torture (BBC; CHRD).
  • 26 December 2017: Convicted of “subversion of state power”. Sentenced to 8 years’ imprisonment and 5 years’ deprivation of political rights (court notice). The court alleged that he used “rights defence” and “performance art” as a pretext to attack the state system. He said he would appeal.
  • 27–28 December 2017: The US and German embassies call for his immediate release. The PRC Ministry of Foreign Affairs calls their statement interference in internal affairs (GPIL; VOA/AP).
  • 18 January 2018: The European Parliament calls for his immediate and unconditional release.
  • 8 February 2018: The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and three Special Rapporteurs write to the PRC government, which replies defending the verdict (OHCHR).
  • 17 April 2018: The Tianjin Municipal High People’s Court rejects his appeal (Amnesty).
  • July 2018: Transferred to Qingliu Prison, Fujian. In 2019 his father reports deteriorating health and a possible spinal injury, which Wu attributes to mistreatment in pre-trial detention (CHRD).
  • 18 May 2023: Released after completing his sentence. He returns to Xiamen. His father says police installed cameras and stepped up patrols near the family home (VOA; RFA).
  • 10 June 2023: In a letter to a friend, Wu says he will focus on his family while under deprivation of political rights. He writes that about two years before his release he voluntarily admitted guilt in prison, to help fellow inmates (China Digital Times).
  • July 2025: Human Rights in China reports he remains under the five-year deprivation of political rights.

Current status (as of 17 October 2026)

Released. Independent reporting (HRIC, July 2025) says he remains under a five-year deprivation of political rights, which under PRC law runs from the end of the prison term and is expected to expire around May 2028. Rights groups have reported continued monitoring of him and his family. No report of new detention or charges was found as of 17 October 2026. A social-media account in his name was active in October 2026. It describes work at an art and design studio in Xiamen and complains of surveillance cameras aimed at the studio. Its ownership has not been independently verified.

Media profile: For news coverage, official statements and documents on this case, see Wu Gan — Media Profile & Archive.

Sources

  1. Tianjin No. 2 Intermediate People’s Court notice, 26 Dec 2017 (archived by China Digital Times): https://chinadigitaltimes.net/chinese/575474.html
  2. Chinese Human Rights Defenders, “Wu Gan (吴淦)”: https://www.nchrd.org/2016/03/wu-gan/
  3. Amnesty International, Urgent Action ASA 17/8248/2018, 19 Apr 2018: https://www.amnesty.org/zh-hant/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/ASA1782482018ENGLISH.pdf
  4. Dui Hua Foundation, Prisoner Updates 2023 #7: https://duihua.org/prisoner-updates-2023-7/
  5. Human Rights in China, “10 Years After the 709 Crackdown”, 9 Jul 2025: https://news.hrichina.org/p/10-years-after-the-709-crackdown
  6. PRC Government reply to UN communication AL CHN 3/2018: https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadFile?gId=34016
  7. VOA Chinese, 19 May 2023: https://www.voachinese.com/a/china-human-rights-activist-wu-gan-released-20230519/7100138.html
  8. China Digital Times, translation of Wu Gan’s letter, 23 Jun 2023: https://chinadigitaltimes.net/2023/06/translation-eight-years-in-prison-hasnt-frightened-me-it-has-only-made-me-stronger/
  9. BBC News, 14 Aug 2017: https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-china-blog-40920495
  10. GPIL (text of US–German joint statement and MFA reply): https://gpil.jura.uni-bonn.de/2017/12/china-denounces-german-interference-internal-affairs/