Read More here: Under house arrest: blind activist who exposed forced abortions

“Accusations that Chen fabricated the family planning scandal are denied by the victims. Among them is Zhu Hongyun, who was forced to have an abortion in May 2005 because she already had a son. After she realised she was pregnant, she knew the authorities would try to prevent her from giving birth so she fled from her village and went into hiding in Linyi city. She says family planning officials kept her three sisters-in-law hostage until she returned and agreed to let them terminate the foetus. It was seven months old.

Zhu is still trying to recover from the trauma of seeing her dead son dumped into a black plastic bag. But she is not alone. “In this area, if any mother is found to be pregnant, the authorities put pressure on all of their relatives and neighbours,” she said.

Chen campaigned harder than anyone to bring these violations to light. But he is now suffering more than any of the perpetrators. “I feel really sorry about what happened to him,” said Zhu. “He was the one who persuaded people to look at our case.”

Chen Guangcheng is the “Peasant turned legal advocate is punished for revealing dark side of one-child policy.”