67-519: Zhang Zhan ( simplified Chinese : 张展 ; traditional Chinese : 張展 ; pinyin : Zhāng Zhǎn ; born 2 September 1983) is a Chinese citizen journalist and former lawyer who travelled to Wuhan in February 2020, from where she reported on the impact of the lockdown measures imposed in the city in response to the COVID-19 outbreak there, and questioned the handling of the crisis by authorities. She
134-481: A British diplomat were blocked from entering the courtroom. The trial lasted less than three hours in total. Foreign media saw the timing of the trial between Christmas and New Year as aiming to minimise attention in Western countries, a tactic which China had used previously in the trial of other dissidents. Zhang was sentenced to four years imprisonment, making her the first citizen journalist to be sentenced for reporting
201-539: A Wuhan resident who expressed feeling abandoned by authorities. In dozens of short, shaky videos which she live-streamed and uploaded on Twitter , YouTube , and other social media, she documented overflowing hospitals, empty shops, the Wuhan Institute of Virology (multiple times), crematoria, the detention of independent journalists, and harassment of families of victims of the pandemic seeking accountability. She also posted essays. One story on 16 February 2020 accused
268-409: A coalition of 45 non-governmental organizations, including Reporters Without Borders (RSF), called Chinese leader Xi Jinping to be exonerated and for Zhang s "immediate" release due to her health condition. RSF's East Asia bureau head Cédric Alviani said that Zhang "should never have been arrested, let alone subjected to a harsh prison sentence". In November 2021, RSF announced Zhang as a nominee of
335-443: A component—either a character or a sub-component called a radical —usually involves either a reduction in its total number of strokes , or an apparent streamlining of which strokes are chosen in what places—for example, the ⼓ ' WRAP ' radical used in the traditional character 沒 is simplified to ⼏ ' TABLE ' to form the simplified character 没 . By systematically simplifying radicals, large swaths of
402-434: A conversion table. While exercising such derivation, the following rules should be observed: Sample Derivations : The Series One List of Variant Characters reduces the number of total standard characters. First, amongst each set of variant characters sharing identical pronunciation and meaning, one character (usually the simplest in form) is elevated to the standard character set, and the rest are made obsolete. Then amongst
469-407: A few revised forms, and was implemented for official use by China's State Council on 5 June 2013. In Chinese, simplified characters are referred to by their official name 简化字 ; jiǎnhuàzì , or colloquially as 简体字 ; jiǎntǐzì . The latter term refers broadly to all character variants featuring simplifications of character form or structure, a practice which has always been present as
536-599: A newly coined phono-semantic compound : Removing radicals Only retaining single radicals Replacing with ancient forms or variants : Adopting ancient vulgar variants : Readopting abandoned phonetic-loan characters : Copying and modifying another traditional character : Based on 132 characters and 14 components listed in Chart 2 of the Complete List , the 1,753 derived characters found in Chart 3 can be created by systematically simplifying components using Chart 2 as
603-568: A part of the Chinese writing system. The official name tends to refer to the specific, systematic set published by the Chinese government, which includes not only simplifications of individual characters, but also a substantial reduction in the total number of characters through the merger of formerly distinct forms. According to Chinese palaeographer Qiu Xigui , the broadest trend in the evolution of Chinese characters over their history has been simplification, both in graphical shape ( 字形 ; zìxíng ),
670-522: A video call on 28 October, could not walk unassisted and was drooping her head. In late 2021, Zhang's family made personal visits to her. Her mother said that the condition of her daughter in late November was still the same as before, in spite of her having been admitted again to hospital at the end of October. The family said that the hospital had withheld the clinical report from them. In February 2022, Zhang's mother revealed that her daughter's health had improved and Zhang had halted her hunger strike. Zhang
737-440: Is actually more complex than eliminated ones. An example is the character 搾 which is eliminated in favor of the variant form 榨 . The 扌 'HAND' with three strokes on the left of the eliminated 搾 is now seen as more complex, appearing as the ⽊ 'TREE' radical 木 , with four strokes, in the chosen variant 榨 . Not all characters standardised in the simplified set consist of fewer strokes. For instance,
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#1732855545836804-454: Is derived. Merging homophonous characters: Adapting cursive shapes ( 草書楷化 ): Replacing a component with a simple arbitrary symbol (such as 又 and 乂 ): Omitting entire components : Omitting components, then applying further alterations : Structural changes that preserve the basic shape Replacing the phonetic component of phono-semantic compounds : Replacing an uncommon phonetic component : Replacing entirely with
871-809: Is now discouraged. A State Language Commission official cited "oversimplification" as the reason for restoring some characters. The language authority declared an open comment period until 31 August 2009, for feedback from the public. In 2013, the List of Commonly Used Standard Chinese Characters was published as a revision of the 1988 lists; it included a total of 8105 characters. It included 45 newly recognized standard characters that were previously considered variant forms, as well as official approval of 226 characters that had been simplified by analogy and had seen wide use but were not explicitly given in previous lists or documents. Singapore underwent three successive rounds of character simplification , eventually arriving at
938-609: Is referred to as the " big seal script ". The traditional narrative, as also attested in the Shuowen Jiezi dictionary ( c. 100 AD ), is that the Qin small seal script that would later be imposed across China was originally derived from the Zhou big seal script with few modifications. However, the body of epigraphic evidence comparing the character forms used by scribes gives no indication of any real consolidation in character forms prior to
1005-540: Is used instead of 叠 in regions using traditional characters. The Chinese government stated that it wished to keep Chinese orthography stable. The Chart of Generally Utilized Characters of Modern Chinese was published in 1988 and included 7000 simplified and unsimplified characters. Of these, half were also included in the revised List of Commonly Used Characters in Modern Chinese , which specified 2500 common characters and 1000 less common characters. In 2009,
1072-459: The COVID-19 pandemic in Wuhan . Zhang was accused of fabricating two items in her reporting from Wuhan; that residents were forced to pay a fee to get COVID-19 tests, and that residents confined to their homes had been sent rotten vegetables by neighbourhood committees. Zhang maintains these are true. The trial before a Shanghai court took place on 28 December 2020. Supporters, foreign journalists, and
1139-656: The Chinese language , with the other being traditional characters . Their mass standardization during the 20th century was part of an initiative by the People's Republic of China (PRC) to promote literacy, and their use in ordinary circumstances on the mainland has been encouraged by the Chinese government since the 1950s. They are the official forms used in mainland China and Singapore , while traditional characters are officially used in Hong Kong , Macau , and Taiwan . Simplification of
1206-821: The "Dot" stroke : The traditional components ⺥ and 爫 become ⺈ : The traditional component 奐 becomes 奂 : Chinese Human Rights Defenders China Human Rights Defenders (CHRD) is a non-government organization of domestic and overseas Chinese human rights activists and groups. The organization is headquartered in Washington DC . Its objective is to provide assistance to both human rights activists and victims of rights abuses, as well as to monitor developments in human rights and rule of law. CHRD supplies grants to Chinese human rights activists, as well as legal training and assistance. The group issues statements on human rights issues and its website provides news and background information. On 26 October 2022,
1273-456: The "external appearances of individual graphs", and in graphical form ( 字体 ; 字體 ; zìtǐ ), "overall changes in the distinguishing features of graphic[al] shape and calligraphic style, [...] in most cases refer[ring] to rather obvious and rather substantial changes". The initiatives following the founding of the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) to universalize the use of their small seal script across
1340-476: The 1986 General List of Simplified Chinese Characters , hereafter the General List . All characters simplified this way are enumerated in Chart 1 and Chart 2 in the 1986 Complete List . Characters in both charts are structurally simplified based on similar set of principles. They are separated into two charts to clearly mark those in Chart 2 as 'usable as simplified character components', based on which Chart 3
1407-508: The 1986 mainland China revisions. Unlike in mainland China, Singapore parents have the option of registering their children's names in traditional characters. Malaysia also promulgated a set of simplified characters in 1981, though completely identical to the mainland Chinese set. They are used in Chinese-language schools. All characters simplified this way are enumerated in Charts 1 and 2 of
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#17328555458361474-470: The Chinese government published a major revision to the list which included a total of 8300 characters. No new simplifications were introduced. In addition, slight modifications to the orthography of 44 characters to fit traditional calligraphic rules were initially proposed, but were not implemented due to negative public response. Also, the practice of unrestricted simplification of rare and archaic characters by analogy using simplified radicals or components
1541-712: The Epoch Times, Zhang had "maliciously hype[d] up the situation in Wuhan, reaching a wide audience and causing a negative impact." On 20 November 2021, the diplomatic mission of China at the United Nations in Geneva responded with strong criticism to the statement by the UN human rights office from a day earlier. Mission spokesman Zhang Yuyin said that the office had turned "a blind eye to information provided by China through normal channels," had "irresponsible" and "erroneous" comments, and that
1608-700: The Tiananmen protesters before them, these individuals peacefully pressed Chinese leaders to recognize and respect human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Chinese Constitution [...] These heroes should be honored by the world for their courage and the international community must demand their unconditional release.". In December 2020, the European Union (EU) called for her to be released immediately. They also called for
1675-749: The Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell , called on 24 November for the unconditional release of Zhang and noted at the same time that previous calls by the European Union had not received a response. In December 2020, the Embassy of the United Kingdom, Beijing , said her case "raises serious concerns about media freedom in China" and that she was one of at least 47 journalists currently (December 2020) in detention in China for their coronavirus reporting;
1742-664: The United States was "deeply concerned about the deteriorating health" of Zhang, that it had "serious concerns about the arbitrary nature of her detention and her mistreatment during it", and called for her "immediate and unconditional release". On 2 June 2023, Zhang and two other human rights figures were nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by the Congressional-Executive Commission on China 's Chairs Christopher Smith and Jeff Merkley . The Chairs said, "Like
1809-428: The character set are altered. Some simplifications were based on popular cursive forms that embody graphic or phonetic simplifications of the traditional forms. In addition, variant characters with identical pronunciation and meaning were reduced to a single standardized character, usually the simplest among all variants in form. Finally, many characters were left untouched by simplification and are thus identical between
1876-407: The chosen variants, those that appear in the "Complete List of Simplified Characters" are also simplified in character structure accordingly. Some examples follow: Sample reduction of equivalent variants : Ancient variants with simple structure are preferred : Simpler vulgar forms are also chosen : The chosen variant was already simplified in Chart 1 : In some instances, the chosen variant
1943-465: The country's writing system as a serious impediment to its modernization. In 1916, a multi-part English-language article entitled "The Problem of the Chinese Language" co-authored by the Chinese linguist Yuen Ren Chao (1892–1982) and poet Hu Shih (1891–1962) has been identified as a turning point in the history of the Chinese script—as it was one of the first clear calls for China to move away from
2010-501: The day after she had last streamed a live broadcast from near Hankou railway station . Later, it was revealed she was detained by police at a hotel near the railway station where she was staying, and transported back to Shanghai. In the days prior to losing contact with her friends, she had told them that she was being followed. She was imprisoned without charge until November. Zhang is one of several citizen journalists , including Li Zehua , Chen Qiushi , and Fang Bin who went missing at
2077-472: The early 20th century. In 1909, the educator and linguist Lufei Kui formally proposed the use of simplified characters in education for the first time. Over the following years—marked by the 1911 Xinhai Revolution that toppled the Qing dynasty , followed by growing social and political discontent that further erupted into the 1919 May Fourth Movement —many anti-imperialist intellectuals throughout China began to see
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2144-616: The first official list of simplified forms was published, consisting of 324 characters collated by Peking University professor Qian Xuantong . However, fierce opposition within the KMT resulted in the list being rescinded in 1936. Work throughout the 1950s resulted in the 1956 promulgation of the Chinese Character Simplification Scheme , a draft of 515 simplified characters and 54 simplified components, whose simplifications would be present in most compound characters. Over
2211-463: The first round—but was massively unpopular and never saw consistent use. The second round of simplifications was ultimately retracted officially in 1986, well after they had largely ceased to be used due to their unpopularity and the confusion they caused. In August 2009, China began collecting public comments for a revised list of simplified characters; the resulting List of Commonly Used Standard Chinese Characters lists 8,105 characters, including
2278-465: The following decade, the Script Reform Committee deliberated on characters in the 1956 scheme, collecting public input regarding the recognizability of variants, and often approving forms in small batches. Parallel to simplification, there were also initiatives aimed at eliminating the use of characters entirely and replacing them with pinyin as an official Chinese alphabet, but this possibility
2345-455: The founding of the Qin. The Han dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD) that inherited the Qin administration coincided with the perfection of clerical script through the process of libian . Eastward spread of Western learning Though most closely associated with the People's Republic, the idea of a mass simplification of character forms first gained traction in China during
2412-425: The government of covering up the true numbers of infections and deaths "in the name of maintaining stability", of keeping the media under control, and accused the authorities of "coercively and violently ordering and depriving people of their basic human and property rights" through the imposed strict lockdown. According to Zhang, crematoria in Wuhan were running day and night, during a time when state media claimed that
2479-466: The increased usage of 朙 was followed by proliferation of a third variant: 眀 , with 目 'eye' on the left—likely derived as a contraction of 朙 . Ultimately, 明 became the character's standard form. The Book of Han (111 AD) describes an earlier attempt made by King Xuan of Zhou ( d. 782 BC ) to unify character forms across the states of ancient China , with his chief chronicler having "[written] fifteen chapters describing" what
2546-526: The insertion of the nasogastric tube ." Her lawyer had stated in late 2020 that she may not survive. Zhang was charged with picking quarrels and provoking trouble , a charge the Chinese government often uses to imprison opponents, and was sentenced to four years in prison. The crime is defined as undermining public order by creating a disturbance in a public place. The indictment sheet accused Zhang of talking to foreign media such as Radio Free Asia and The Epoch Times , and spreading false information regarding
2613-459: The left, with the 月 'Moon' component on the right. Li Si ( d. 208 BC ), the Chancellor of Qin, attempted to universalize the Qin small seal script across China following the wars that had politically unified the country for the first time. Li prescribed the 朙 form of the word for 'bright', but some scribes ignored this and continued to write the character as 明 . However,
2680-475: The lockdown on Wuhan for being unduly harsh, saying that the government had managed the city with "intimidation and threats", and that this was "truly the tragedy of this country." Citizen journalists have been a source of unfiltered information about the pandemic in China. However, there are very few due to lack of accreditation for them. The Network of Chinese Human Rights Defenders , a Chinese human rights group recorded that Zhang went missing on 14 May 2020,
2747-402: The most prominent Chinese authors of the 20th century, stated that "if Chinese characters are not destroyed, then China will die" ( 漢字不滅，中國必亡 ). During the 1930s and 1940s, discussions regarding simplification took place within the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) party. Many members of the Chinese intelligentsia maintained that simplification would increase literacy rates throughout the country. In 1935,
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2814-848: The organization's press freedom award for courage, in recognition of her journalistic work. She was announced as the recipient a week later. Ahead of the EU-China summit in March 2022, Zhang was among the shortlist of human rights defenders and activists called for the release by a joint NGO letter to the President of the European Commission and the President of the European Council. Among the NGOs in support were Human Rights Watch , Front Line Defenders and Christian Solidarity Worldwide . On 14 June 2023, Zhang
2881-477: The pandemic in China. She was represented by several lawyers, including Ren Quanniu and Zhang Keke. She declined to appeal her conviction, telling her lawyers that she saw the legal process used to imprison her as legally invalid. Zhang was hospitalized in Shanghai on 31 July 2021, after staging a long-running hunger strike, according to a message from her mother on Chinese social media. Her mother also wrote that Zhang
2948-440: The pandemic was under control. Another video showed her visiting the police station where Li Wenliang had been reprimanded for spreading word about the outbreak, trying to obtain information about his case. In an essay posted in late April, she criticized that those who had lost loved ones due to the pandemic were being "oppressed" by authorities, through not being allowed to mourn. In her last video before her arrest, she criticised
3015-430: The public and quickly fell out of official use. It was ultimately formally rescinded in 1986. The second-round simplifications were unpopular in large part because most of the forms were completely new, in contrast to the familiar variants comprising the majority of the first round. With the rescission of the second round, work toward further character simplification largely came to an end. In 1986, authorities retracted
3082-465: The recently conquered parts of the empire is generally seen as being the first real attempt at script reform in Chinese history. Before the 20th century, variation in character shape on the part of scribes, which would continue with the later invention of woodblock printing , was ubiquitous. For example, prior to the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) the character meaning 'bright' was written as either 明 or 朙 —with either 日 'Sun' or 囧 'window' on
3149-475: The release of human rights lawyer Yu Wensheng , and several others detained and convicted human rights defenders and reporters in China. An EU foreign policy spokesman, Peter Stano, stated, "according to credible sources, Ms Zhang has been subject to torture and ill-treatment during her detention and her health condition has seriously deteriorated". Nabila Massrali, spokeswoman for the High Representative of
3216-476: The same set of simplified characters as mainland China. The first round was promulgated by the Ministry of Education in 1969, consisting of 498 simplified characters derived from 502 traditional characters. A second round of 2287 simplified characters was promulgated in 1974. The second set contained 49 differences from the mainland China system; these were removed in the final round in 1976. In 1993, Singapore adopted
3283-526: The same time. On 19 June 2020, Zhang was formally arrested on the orders of the Pudong state prosecutor. She was held in the Pudong Detention Center . According to Amnesty International , Zhang was tortured for three months before sentencing, which involved being kept shackled and in handcuffs 24 hours a day for the entire time and being force-fed ; Zhang had been on hunger strike since June 2020 and
3350-461: The second round completely, though they had been largely fallen out of use within a year of their initial introduction. That year, the authorities also promulgated a final version of the General List of Simplified Chinese Characters . It was identical to the 1964 list save for 6 changes—including the restoration of 3 characters that had been simplified in the first round: 叠 , 覆 , 像 ; the form 疊
3417-560: The statement called on the Chinese government for their release. in a tweet on 28 December 2020, the United Nations human rights office said, that it had "raised her case with the authorities throughout 2020", and that it would continue to call for her release. On 19 November 2021, the human rights office urged for "Zhang's immediate and unconditional release, at the very least, on humanitarian grounds", and for her to be able to access "urgent life-saving" medical care. on 17 September 2021,
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#17328555458363484-625: The success of China in combating the COVID-19 pandemic was "not something that anyone can distort or write off". The Chinese Embassy in Britain said in a statement on the case of Zhang that the right of prison inmates to receive medical attention was "fully guaranteed", and that "anyone who breaches the law shall be sanctioned accordingly." Zhang is a practicing Christian . Simplified Chinese characters Simplified Chinese characters are one of two standardized character sets widely used to write
3551-488: The traditional and simplified Chinese orthographies. The Chinese government has never officially announced the completion of the simplification process after the bulk of characters were introduced by the 1960s. In the wake of the Cultural Revolution , a second round of simplified characters was promulgated in 1977—largely composed of entirely new variants intended to artificially lower the stroke count, in contrast to
3618-817: The traditional character 強 , with 11 strokes is standardised as 强 , with 12 strokes, which is a variant character. Such characters do not constitute simplified characters. The new standardized character forms shown in the Characters for Publishing and revised through the Common Modern Characters list tend to adopt vulgar variant character forms. Since the new forms take vulgar variants, many characters now appear slightly simpler compared to old forms, and as such are often mistaken as structurally simplified characters. Some examples follow: The traditional component 釆 becomes 米 : The traditional component 囚 becomes 日 : The traditional "Break" stroke becomes
3685-516: The use of characters entirely. Instead, Chao proposed that the language be written with an alphabet, which he saw as more logical and efficient. The alphabetization and simplification campaigns would exist alongside one another among the Republican intelligentsia for the next several decades. Recent commentators have echoed some contemporary claims that Chinese characters were blamed for the economic problems in China during that time. Lu Xun , one of
3752-461: Was abandoned, confirmed by a speech given by Zhou Enlai in 1958. In 1965, the PRC published the List of Commonly Used Characters for Printing [ zh ] (hereafter Characters for Printing ), which included standard printed forms for 6196 characters, including all of the forms from the 1956 scheme. A second round of simplified characters was promulgated in 1977, but was poorly received by
3819-521: Was able to walk on her own and her stomachache has ended due to her food intake. In May 2024, Zhang was due to be released from prison. On 21 May, Wang Jianhong, the founder of the Zhang Zhan Concern Group, posted a video of Zhang confirming that she was released and was sent to her brother's home in Shanghai, and thanked the outside world for their help and concern. At the end of August, Zhang lost contact while traveling to her hometown and
3886-594: Was called for release by a coalition of 42 NGOs, including Freedom House , Amnesty International , Human Rights Watch , etc., in their joint letter to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken 's before his visit to China. As of November 2020, it was nearly impossible to find writings or videos by Zhang on the Chinese internet, although some comments by netizens on her had slipped past internet censorship . An indictment dated 15 September 2020, which became known on 13 November 2020, said that through accepting interviews from foreign media outlets such as Radio Free Asia and
3953-665: Was detained in May 2020, and was later tortured and sentenced in December 2020 to four years imprisonment on the charges of " picking quarrels and provoking trouble " (寻衅滋事). She is the first citizen journalist to be sentenced for reporting on the pandemic in China, although at least ten journalists and commentators were known to have been arrested for their coronavirus reporting as of February 2021, with seven remaining missing or detained as of that date. Chen Qiushi reappeared in September 2021. Zhang
4020-490: Was detained in a detention center in Shanghai. The charges against her are still unclear. On 29 December 2020, Mike Pompeo , the United States Secretary of State released a statement that "The United States strongly condemns the People's Republic of China's (PRC) sham prosecution and conviction of citizen journalist Zhang Zhan on December 28". On 8 November 2021, Department of State spokesman Ned Price said that
4087-431: Was detained on suspicion of disturbing the public order until 13 November 2019, during which time she went on hunger strike twice. On 1 February 2020, Zhang travelled from Shanghai, her place of residence, to Wuhan to cover the COVID-19 pandemic there as a citizen journalist . In a video published by the portal China Change , Zhang stated that prior to her travel to Wuhan, she had been deeply moved by an online post by
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#17328555458364154-413: Was hospitalized from 31 July until 11 August 2021, due to malnutrition after an extended intermittent hunger strike. In late October, her mother and brother considered Zhang to be close to death as she continued her hunger strike, leading to calls by the United States government, Reporters without Borders , and the United Nations human rights office for her immediate unconditional release. In May 2024, she
4221-512: Was reported to having been released from prison after completion of her sentence, although her current whereabouts is unknown. Zhang was born in Xianyang , Shaanxi , and graduated in finance at Southwestern University of Finance and Economics . She moved to Shanghai in 2010, and formerly worked as a lawyer, but had her license revoked for participation in the Weiquan movement . In August 2018, Zhang
4288-422: Was since force-fed through a feeding tube. Her hands were tied to prevent her from removing it. Her mother described it as a "partial hunger strike" in which Zhang ate fruit and cookies, but not meat, rice, or vegetables. One of her lawyers said that she had begun taking some food after her health had started to decline. Her lawyer, Ren Quanniu, said that Zhang had told him on previous occasions that her hunger strike
4355-413: Was to protest against the curtailment of freedom of speech in China, rather than for being released. In December 2020, her lawyer, Ren Quanniu, described her as very weak. She appeared in court in December 2020 in a wheelchair. Another of her lawyers, Zhang Keke, said: "In addition to headache, dizziness, and stomach pain, there was also pain in her mouth and throat. She said this may be inflammation due to
4422-459: Was warned by police for "incitement of state power". In April 2019, she was detained by authorities on suspicion of "disturbing the public order". In September 2019, during the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests , Zhang held up an umbrella on Nanjing Road and People's Square in Shanghai in support of the protesters, inscribed with the slogan, "End socialism, Communist Party down." On 9 September, she
4489-493: Was weighing less than 40 kilograms, half her body weight from before her detention. On 2 August 2021, after notification from and on request of authorities, her parents and brother went to Shanghai to visit Zhang in prison but were only given permission to speak with her over the phone. Zhang returned to prison on 11 August 2021. Subsequently, her health appeared to deteriorate further according to her mother, who told Radio Free Asia that her daughter, with whom she had spoken in
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