China: Dissident artist jailed for satirical Mao sculptures - DW.com
Chinese sculptor Gao Zhen has been sentenced to three years in prison for satirical artworks depicting Mao Zedong created nearly two decades ago. The conviction was made under a law protecting the reputation of heroes that was enacted long after the artworks were produced.
Why it matters
The case highlights the tightening of freedom of expression in China and the retroactive application of laws to suppress political dissent.
Sculptor Gao Zhen was charged under China's "Law on the Protection of Heroes and Martyrs." His supporters have called for his immediate release.
https://p.dw.com/p/5JO8y Communist revolutionary Mao Zedong is considered the founder of modern China/Getty Images Advertisement A court in China has reportedly sentenced a dissident artist to three years in jail for sculptures which satirized former Chinese revolutionary leader Mao Zedong .
Sculptor Gao Zhen, 70, became famous in the 2000s for addressing sensitive topics in China such as the 1966-1976 Cultural Revolution or the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre through artworks he produced with his younger brother Gao Qiang.
Zhen, who is based in New York , was arrested during a visit to Beijing in August 2024. He was tried this year in a one-day behind-closed-doors trial and found guilty of "infringing upon the reputation of heroes."
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