作者/编辑：钟然
责任编辑：罗志飞
许志永（1973年3月2日—），河南省民权县人，中国法律学者、维权人士，“新公民运动”主要发起人之一，长期致力于推动公民权利、教育平等和法治建设。他被认为是中国最具代表性的人权捍卫者之一，却因坚持自由、公义和非暴力抗争而多次遭中共迫害。
许志永本科毕业于河南大学法律系，后在北京大学法学院取得法学博士学位，留校任教于中国政法大学。他性格温和，却一贯坚持理性表达和公民责任感。2003年，他作为公益律师参与推动“孙志刚事件”的舆论与法律救济，直接促成国务院废除“收容遣送制度”，这是中国法治史上具有里程碑意义的一次进步，也使他被广泛视为公民维权运动的先行者。
2005年，他与朋友创办公益组织“公盟”，关注教育平权、环保与弱势群体权益。然而，随着组织影响力扩大，他开始受到当局严密监控。2009年，当局以“偷逃税款”为由取缔公盟，并以“逃税罪”判处许志永有期徒刑两年，这被普遍认为是政治性打压。
出狱后，许志永并未沉默，而是于2012年提出“新公民运动”。这一运动核心理念是：公民通过理性、和平、非暴力的方式推动中国社会的公正与宪政改革。新公民运动的标志性诉求包括：官员财产公开、教育平等、反腐败与公民社会建设。他倡导以“同城聚会”等形式让普通公民交流社会问题、学习法律知识，从而培养独立思考与公民意识。
然而，这一系列活动很快遭到镇压。2013年7月，许志永被以“聚众扰乱公共场所秩序罪”逮捕，2014年1月，北京法院判处他四年徒刑。入狱期间，他多次受到苛刻待遇，但依旧坚持信念，撰写大量反思文章。
2017年刑满释放后，他虽被持续监控，却继续以写作和公开演讲呼吁社会改革，强调非暴力公民抗争的重要性。2020年初，新冠疫情爆发后，许志永在网络上发表《劝退书》，呼吁习近平下台，要求恢复言论自由与公民权利。这份文字再次触怒当局。同年2月，他在广州被捕，随后被秘密羁押，遭受长时间隔离和酷刑。2021年4月，北京市法院以“煽动颠覆国家政权罪”重判他有期徒刑14年，剥夺政治权利四年。这是近年来中国对知识分子与人权捍卫者最沉重的一次判决，震惊海内外。
许志永始终强调“自由、公义、爱”，他坚信一个健康的国家必须建立在公民社会与宪政民主的基础之上。他曾说：“公民的责任，就是在黑暗中点亮一盏灯。” 中共极权政府为了延续统治，不惜混淆是非，把公民对真理与正义的追求视为威胁。它不是回应社会问题、改善治理，而是用高压手段去压制异议，把敢于发声的人打成“罪人”。这种做法既剥夺了公民的基本权利，也让整个社会陷入恐惧与沉默。许志永这样的知识分子本应是国家进步的良心，却被当局痛下杀手，这无疑暴露出极权的脆弱与虚伪。他的人生经历反映了当代中国知识分子在追求真理与正义道路上的苦难与坚持。
Xu Zhiyong: A Civic Fighter Guided by Freedom, Justice, and Love
Author/Editor: Zhong Ran
Chief Editor: Luo Zhifei
Summary: Xu Zhiyong, a legal scholar and civic movement advocate, has long championed freedom, justice, and nonviolent resistance, promoting the rule of law and educational equality. For this, he has been repeatedly sentenced by the Chinese Communist Party, becoming a symbol of the conscience and resistance of China’s intellectuals.
Xu Zhiyong (born March 2, 1973), a native of Minquan County, Henan Province, is a Chinese legal scholar, human rights activist, and one of the main initiators of the “New Citizens’ Movement.” He has dedicated his life to advancing civic rights, educational equality, and constitutional governance. Widely regarded as one of China’s most representative human rights defenders, he has been repeatedly persecuted by the Chinese Communist authorities for his steadfast commitment to freedom, justice, and nonviolent resistance.
Xu graduated from the Department of Law at Henan University and later earned his PhD in law at Peking University, where he stayed on to teach at China University of Political Science and Law. Though mild in temperament, he consistently upheld rational expression and civic responsibility. In 2003, as a public interest lawyer, he helped push for legal and media attention to the “Sun Zhigang incident,” which directly led to the State Council’s abolition of the “custody and repatriation” system. This was a landmark moment in China’s legal history and earned him recognition as a pioneer in the country’s rights defense movement.
In 2005, he co-founded the public-interest organization “Gongmeng” (Open Constitution Initiative) with friends, focusing on educational equality, environmental issues, and the rights of vulnerable groups. However, as the organization’s influence grew, it came under strict state surveillance. In 2009, authorities shut down Gongmeng on allegations of “tax evasion” and sentenced Xu to two years in prison for “tax-related crimes”—a move widely recognized as politically motivated repression.
Upon his release, Xu did not remain silent. In 2012, he launched the “New Citizens’ Movement,” which emphasized promoting social justice and constitutional reform in China through rational, peaceful, and nonviolent means. Its hallmark demands included official asset disclosure, equal access to education, anti-corruption, and the building of a civic society. He encouraged citizens to hold “same-city gatherings,” where ordinary people could discuss social issues, learn legal knowledge, and foster independent thinking and civic awareness.
This initiative quickly came under suppression. In July 2013, Xu was arrested on charges of “gathering crowds to disrupt public order,” and in January 2014, a Beijing court sentenced him to four years in prison. During incarceration, he endured harsh treatment but continued to hold firm in his beliefs, writing numerous reflective essays.
After completing his sentence in 2017, though constantly monitored, Xu continued to advocate reform through writing and public speaking, stressing the importance of nonviolent civic resistance. In early 2020, amid the COVID-19 outbreak, he published an open letter titled A Call for Resignation, urging Xi Jinping to step down and demanding the restoration of freedom of speech and citizens’ rights. This enraged the authorities once again. In February of that year, he was arrested in Guangzhou, secretly detained, subjected to prolonged isolation and torture. In April 2021, a Beijing court sentenced him to 14 years in prison for “inciting subversion of state power” and deprived him of his political rights for four years. This was one of the harshest sentences against a Chinese intellectual and human rights defender in recent years, shocking both domestic and international audiences.
Xu Zhiyong has consistently emphasized the values of “freedom, justice, and love,” firmly believing that a healthy nation must be founded on civil society and constitutional democracy. He once said: “The responsibility of a citizen is to light a lamp in the darkness.” The CCP regime, in order to preserve its rule, deliberately distorts right and wrong, branding the pursuit of truth and justice as a threat. Rather than addressing social problems or improving governance, it resorts to repression, silencing dissent and criminalizing those who dare to speak out. This approach strips citizens of their fundamental rights and plunges society into fear and silence. Intellectuals like Xu Zhiyong, who should serve as the moral conscience of national progress, are instead ruthlessly targeted—laying bare the fragility and hypocrisy of authoritarian rule. His life embodies both the suffering and the perseverance of contemporary Chinese intellectuals in their pursuit of truth and justice.
