Li Zhi (dissident)
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At a time when the internet began to gain popularity with Chinese dissidents to exchange their views, while police had begun monitoring chatrooms,[1] Li posted essays online that detailed local corruption.[2] He was detained in Sichuan province in August 2003, formally charged with "conspiracy to subvert state power" in September,[1] and sentenced for "inciting subversion" to eight years imprisonment in December that year.[2] He was convicted also for his association with the Democracy Party of China, which is a banned organization in communist China.[3] The Congressional-Executive Commission on China describes him as a political prisoner.[4] It is alleged that part of the evidence against him, namely his e-mail account and username, was provided by the Hong Kong subsidiary of the Internet company Yahoo! to the Chinese authorities.[2][3] Local sources said that the cooperation of Yahoo! with authorities had been mentioned in the verdict.[5]
Other cases
Other cases involving political prisoners in the People's Republic of China where information had been provided by Yahoo! are Shi Tao, Jiang Lijun, and Wang Xiaoning.
