Wan Yanhai

Wan Yanhai (Chinese: 万延海; pinyin: Wàn Yánhǎi) is the best-known AIDS activist in China born 20 November 1963.

His "frank and aggressive" approach toward AIDS have led to frequent run-ins with authorities and landed him in detention three times in the past 12 years. Wan, 43, is the director of the country's foremost AIDS-awareness group, the Beijing-based Aizhixing Institute of Health Education. (The Chinese characters for "Aizhixing" (愛知行)[1] represent love, knowledge and action and are a play on the Chinese word for AIDS.)

He was fired in 1994 from his post as a public health official after setting up the first HIV/AIDS telephone hotline in China where Chinese people can obtain comprehensive information on HIV/AIDS.[2]

On 24 August 2002 he was picked up by police after attending a film screening at a Beijing gay and lesbian film festival and charged with the leaking of an internal government report into the Bloodhead scandal in Henan Province.[3] He was released a month later on 20 September.[2]

From 6 to 9 November 2006, he attended an international meeting in Indonesia for The Yogyakarta Principles as one of 29 experts. After the meeting he has gotten his most recent detention on November 24 2006 - this time a three-day stopover prompted by his efforts to organize a public forum on HIV/AIDS to coincide with World AIDS Day. After his release on November 27, 2006, Wan accused Chinese leaders of falling "asleep" as the virus spreads. He was forced to cancel his "Blood Safety, AIDS and Legal Human Rights Workshop" (due to have taken place between 25–30 November), which he had hoped would be attended by participants from around the world. Despite his usual call for more action, however, Wan has been circumspect in talking to the media about his latest detention and also expressed a continuing desire to work with health officials to prevent further spread of the disease.

As the Charter 08 by Liu Xiaobo was published on 10 December 2008, he agreed it and became one of the signatories. In July 2009, he also participated the 2009 World Outgames for LGBT rights. On May 10, 2010, Wan Yanhai together with his family fled to the United States of America because of what he considers to be government persecution. In March, tax authorities had opened an investigation into the Aizhixing Institute of Health Education.[4]

References

  1. ^ "Error: no |title= specified when using {{Cite web}}". http://www.aizhi.org/. 
  2. ^ a b "Detained AIDS Activist Wan Yanhai Released" (Press release). Human Rights Watch. 20 September 2002. http://hrw.org/english/docs/2002/09/20/china4300.htm. Retrieved 2007-01-29. 
  3. ^ Kellogg, Tom (23 February 2003). "Health officials seek to avoid responsibility for the spread of HIV/AIDS in rural Henan". Human Rights in China. http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/article?revision%5fid=1888&item%5fid=1887. Retrieved 2007-01-29. 
  4. ^ Richburg, Keith B. (11 May 2010). "China's crackdown on nonprofit groups prompts new fears among activists". Washington Post. p. A09. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/10/AR2010051004801_pf.html. Retrieved 2010-05-11.