The official response of the Chinese government to the United Nations Human Rights Mechanism confirmed that the Shanghai police had again taken criminal coercive measures against Zhang on 29 August 2024; and that on 19 September 2025, the People's Court of Shanghai Pudong New District sentenced her again to four years in prison for "provocation" while the International Human Rights Organization continued to warn that her physical condition had deteriorated under the influence of prolonged famine and severe stomach disease and could be in danger of life.
China confirms second sentence timeline to the UN for the first time
The Chinese government’s response to the UN Human Rights Council’s special procedures revealed that Zhang was born in September
- Beijing said she was sentenced to four years in prison in December 2020 for “provocation” and released to full sentence in May
- The Chinese government also confirmed that on August 29, 2024, the Pudong Branch of the Shanghai Municipal Public Security Bureau again took criminal measures against her on the grounds of her suspicion of “provocation” and on September 19, 2025, the Pudong New District People’s Court again sentenced her to four years in prison.
In response, the Chinese government said that Zhang Cheng, because of the "widespread dissemination of false information" on the Internet and serious disturbance of public order, constitutes a "crime of provocation."This expression belongs to the official position of the Chinese government on the case, and is not equivalent to independent judicial review of the content of relevant statements and the evaluation of criminal responsibility.
United Nations Special Procedures raises concerns about arbitrary detention and disassociation
On December 23, 2025, several United Nations Special Procedure Mission officials sent joint charges to the Chinese government in connection with the case.The United Nations Public Records showed that the letter dealt with issues such as human rights defenders, arbitrary detention, disappearance, freedom of opinion and expression, and the independence of judges and lawyers, and was concerned with the issue of Zhang being re-arrested, being sentenced to additional four years in prison, and having no access to information about his place of detention and his health status.
This is not the first time that the United Nations has raised serious concerns about Zhang’s treatment. In November 2021, the United Nations Special Procedure referred to the Chinese government about her rapidly deteriorating and potentially life-threatening health condition during her first sentence.
Amnesty International: Severe stomach disease, significant depletion, life-threatening health
Amnesty International issued an emergency action on May 15, 2026, saying that Zhang has deteriorated to a seriously worrying degree after her second imprisonment in September 2025.The organization said that she suffered from severe stomach disease, significant weight loss, and extreme physical weakness; according to information, Zhang has continued to protest her detention in the form of a famine since January 2025 and her current condition could be life-threatening.
Amnesty International said the authorities continued to refuse to let Zhang contact her lawyer of her choice, which hampered the outside world to independently know her physical condition and also affected her appeal on the conviction.
For these specific accusations regarding health, starvation practices and obstructed meetings with lawyers, Focus China has not received a detailed response from the Shanghai prison administration or court disclosures, so the relevant content is explicitly attributed to the report of the international human rights organization.
New clues appear on the place of detention, but the specific area of detention remains to be officially confirmed
On August 28, the rights information platform quoted “Zhang Exhibition Attention Group” as saying that Zhang Exhibition is currently detained in the Five Prison District of the Shanghai City Women’s Prison. The news is consistent with previous claims about her being transferred to the Shanghai Women’s Prison, but as of the publication, “Focus China” has not yet checked out the documents of the Shanghai City Prison Administration publicly confirming its specific prison area, so the “Five Prison District” information should still be considered as coming from civilian channels and is still to be further verified by official or other independent sources.
Why Zhang became a representative of China's press freedom case
Zhang has served as a lawyer. During a new coronavirus outbreak in early 2020, she travelled to Wuhan to record the situation in Wuhan, hospitals and the general public by text and video. She was detained in May of the same year and sentenced to four years in December by the Shanghai court for "provoking the epidemic". The United Nations Public Intervention Document for 2021 records that prosecutors accused her of publishing "false information" about the Wuhan epidemic and "malignantly hype the Wuhan epidemic."
In May 2024, Zhang ended her first round of four-year prison sentence. Just over three months later, she lost her freedom again and was eventually sentenced to a second four-year sentence in September 2025.Both rounds of criminal prosecution used the "crime of provocation" and made the case one of the typical cases of the international community observing how China applied widespread public order crimes to deal with journalists, human rights defenders and expression of objection.
Reporters Without Borders said at the second trial in September 2025, diplomats from at least seven countries and activists who tried to listen were denied access to the court.
Human rights questions still to be answered
Currently, the judicial fact can be confirmed is that Zhang has been sentenced to four years in prison for the second time by the Shanghai Court, and the Chinese government has officially confirmed the verdict to the United Nations and the date of re-imposed criminal enforcement, but there is still a lack of information on whether she is currently free to meet with a lawyer of her choice, whether she receives independent and adequate medical care, the true extent of prolonged famine and severe stomach disease, and specific detention areas.
For a detained journalist who has repeatedly received urgent attention from the United Nations and international human rights organizations due to health issues, transparent disclosure of his place of detention, allowing family members and independent lawyers to meet regularly, and providing medical ethical treatment conditions are not only related to the fundamental rights in the individual case, but also to the ability of the Chinese authorities to respond to long-standing questions about arbitrary detention, freedom of the press and the guarantee of judicial procedures.
Focus on China will continue to track Zhang’s place of imprisonment, health status, meetings with lawyers and subsequent judicial relief.
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