There are now pretty good Wikipedia articles on “the Deng Yujiao incident” in English, Chinese & Cantonese:

The Deng Yujiao incident occurred on 10 May 2009 in Badong county Hubei province, People’s Republic of China.^[1] The 21 year old female pedicure worker, Deng Yujiao (鄧玉嬌), acting in self-defense, tried to repel the advances of a local government official Deng Guida (鄧貴大) who had come to the hotel looking for sexual services.^[2] She allegedly stabbed in the neck trying to fight him off, causing his death.

Since both the victim and the accused share the same surname of Deng, the case sometimes is being referred to “Two Deng incident”. The Badong police arrested Deng Yujiao and charged her with homicide and refused to grant her bail.

This case came to national prominence through internet fora and chatrooms, where netizens were angered by her treatment. It has resonated with the public sentiment of impotence at the hands of a corrupt and immoral officials, and garnered 4 million forum posts across the nation.^[3] There have been official attempts to play down the incident. Discussion threads were subsequently censored.^[4]

Following groundswell of public protests, prosecutors charged her with a lesser offense of “intentional assault” instead of murder.^[5] She was found guilty, but did not receive a sentence having regards to her mental state. The two surviving officials were sacked.^[6]

[edit] The incident

Deng Yujiao (鄧玉嬌) was a 21 year old female pedicure worker, at the Dream and Fantasy City bath center at Xiong Feng Hotel (雄風宾館) when the incident occurred.^[6]

Deng Guida, the city’s commercial attaché, his deputy and one other official arrived at the club where Deng Yujiao worked on 10 May 2009, and allegedly requested “special service” (often means sexual service in China) from Deng Yujiao who did not submit to the requests.^[6] Deng Guida had allegedly pulled out a ¥4000 stack of banknotes and slapped her in the face with it in order to show off his wealthiness. He then proceeded to push the girl onto a sofa and lay his body on top of her. At this moment, in self-defense, Deng Yujiao used a small 3 inch knife and stabbed her assailant four times. One of the stabs landed in her assailant’s neck, causing him to bleed to death on the spot.^[7] His deputy, Huang Dezhi (黄德智), was also stabbed. Police, who apparently found pills in her purse,^[3] said Deng Yujiao may have been suffering from acute depression, and took her to a psychiatric hospital on 12 May for examination.^[6] During Deng’s days in the hospital her arms and ankles were tied to the bed, which was referred to by the police as “a procedure of protection”.

Two Beijing lawyers, Xia Lin (夏霖) and Xia Nan (夏楠) took on her case pro bono, and on 25 May 2009, they lodged an official complaint against one of the attacker Huang Dejie at the Badong police station. Details of the complaint:

• Huang Dezhi tried to remove her jeans and underwear by force(namely attempted rape) while she was doing laundry.

• Deng Guida then used a wad of $4000 cash to hit her face while yelling: Didn’t you want money? I bet you have not seen any money before. How much money you want, just say it, believe me or not, I shall smack you to death with money. Deng Yujiao retorted: Yes, I have never seen any money before, if you have guts, today you smack me to death. Deng Guida then replied:I am going to smack you to death with money. I’m going to get a truck load of money to squash you to death.

• After stabbing the two men (Deng Guida and Huang Dezhi), Deng Yujiao put down the knife and called the local police, as well as her mother.^[8][9]

[edit] Police chief’s interview

On 22 May 2009, Yang Liyong (楊立勇) was interviewed by Southern Metropolis Daily, during which he presented the official police version of the incident.

1. Deng is a service worker at the KTV.
2. She was requested of a bathing service between opposite sex. On reporter’s question: Why was the Deng Guida’s demand of special service being changed into bathing service, Yang replied:(on special service) may be a lot of people understand it as a sexual service, a sex trade, but on this case, the trade had not gone through, we have no choice, we can only call it a bathing service between opposite sex.
3. Quoted:The public security bureau thinks that she is suspected of committing intentional murder based upon two direct pieces of evidence. First, death was caused. Secondly, Deng Guida suffered two fatal stab wounds which we determined to be quite powerful. Two fatal stab wounds. Unquoted.
4. Quoted:During our investigation of this case, the whole matter is really a very ordinary case involving death. But the public and the media insist on turning into a tragedy. ^[10]

[edit] National icon

Beijing protester highlighting Deng’s suffering. Translation of slogan: “Anyone could potentially be the next Deng Yujiao”

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Internet image of a street demonstration altered for banners supporting Deng Yujiao

After Deng turned herself in to the Police, she was initially charged with murder. Deng claimed she acted in self-defense after the official attempted to rape her. Blogger Wu Gan, wrote about her case in his blog. A Berkeley professor remarked to the New York Times that instead of garnering hundreds of thousands of mentions on Internet blogs and other forums, Deng’s case accumulated in excess of four million posts across different websites.^[3] Deng’s plight struck a note with millions of Chinese fed up with low-level corruption and “rampant social injustice and the lack of fundamental respect in society”, in the words of a Beijing lawyer.^[4] Deng was hailed as a national hero for resisting official abuse of power. Her supporters, who demanded a fair trial, took their protest to Beijing. Their visual stunt was a woman wearing a mask and wrapped in white cloth; a sign saying “Anyone could be Deng Yujiao” was laid on the ground around her. The photos immediately appeared on the Internet.^[3]

Chinese bloggers showed their solidarity with Deng Yujiao by distributing free T-shirts on the net with popular slogans like:

• 江山如此多娇！Translation: The rivers and mountains are so charming and gorgeous. This is a poem by Mao Tsetung, the last Chinese character is 嬌, which is also Deng Yujiao’s name.
• 巴东玉娇龙，华夏女英雄！Translation: Badong Yu Jiao-long, Huaxia heroine. Yu Jiao-long is a famous movie character, where Yu Jiao is also Deng Yujiao’s name.
• 中国烈女，公民楷模！Translation: Heroic woman, citizen role model.
• 抗暴无罪！Translation: It is no sin to resist violence.

As a result of the national outcry, Police released her on bail,^[2] put her under house arrest;^[4] prosecutors charged her with a lesser offense of “intentional assault” instead of murder.^[5] The two surviving officials were sacked on 31 May. Xinhua reported that Badong County Communist Party Discipline Inspection Committee removed Huang Dezhi from the post of vice director of the office of business delegations of Yesanguan Township, and stripped of his CPC membership, as he had “pushed and shoved and verbally insulted a waitress who refused to accompany them to take a bath” in a bathhouse on 10 May in Badong, the authorities said. Huang has been “detained in connection with public order offences.” Deng Zhongjia, 45, another vice director of the same office who was present at the time of the incident, was also fired, osetensibly because the incident had caused a “bad social effect” although he had not broken any laws or regulations.^[11]

[edit] Censorship and alleged official meddling

The Badong county police said that an official had been killed whilst in a “quarrel” with Deng Yujiao. Their statement issued on 13 May said that Deng Guida twice pushed the girl onto a sofa, and was killed by a pedicure knife. Police said that the murder weapon was a “fruit knife” five days later.^[4]

Meng Jianzhu (Chinese: 孟建柱), minister of the Ministry of Public Security of the People’s Republic of China, allegedly gave instruction to his deputy:

• 这样的事，希望我们公安部门今后反应快一点，网民不讲理，我们就不和他们讲理，人在我们手里，证据在我们手里，大家不用看互联网民意办案。该抓就抓，该杀就杀。上海杀了杨佳，有什么问题？中央很支持，不杀，今后谁还敢当公安？
• Translation: On This kind of matters, I hope our police department shall have a faster reaction. Those internet bloggers refuse to talk sense, so we also will not talk sense. The suspect is in our hands, as well as the evidence. There is no need to watch and work according to those public opinions protrayed by internet bloggers. To arrest those deserved to be arrested, to kill those deserved to be killed. Shanghai authorities had killed Yang Jia, and there has been any problem? They had the support of the central government. If they did not kill Yang Jia, from now on who would dare to work as a police?^{[citation needed]}

Deng Yujiao’s mother received a call, purportedly from the police, after which she washed most of her daughter’s clothes thereby removing potential physical evidence. The police also announced on 23 May that she had hired two Hubei lawyers to replace the initial lawyers who, it was alleged, had breached Deng Yujiao’s privacy.^[4]

On approximately 22 May Beijing censors ordered Web sites to stop reporting on the case. The State Council Information Office(新 聞辦) issued directives to all the website to remove all the recommended news stories and commentaries on the case of Deng Yujiao. No posts about Deng Yujiao must be placed at the top of the page. Later on, the Beijing Information Office also telephoned various portals instructing them to use only official government statements and not report or comment on the case of Deng Yujiao. The State Information Office also order media and web portals to dilute the Deng Yujiao case with other news, delete any open letters and pleads, and bar any web based opinion poll or petition.^[12][13]

Television and the Internet were cut off in Yesanguan, officially as a “precaution” against lightning strikes. The Internet attention drew Chinese journalists to Badong County. But after censorship was imposed, local officials began screening outsiders, and some journalists seeking to report there were beaten. The blog of Wu Gan, which had publicised Deng’s case, was shut down by censors.^[3]

[edit] Trial

According to the media, her murder charge was changed to intentional assault, most likely following massive public pressure from internet users who hailed her as a “heroine”.^[5] At her trial on 16 June, a judge said the court had found her guilty because Deng had used excessive force even though she was acting in self-defense. The lenient sentence was on account of diminished responsibility, and because she had surrendered to police and the officials involved had made a “major mistake.” One Beijing human rights lawyer, said the court would not have freed Deng if there was not so much pressure from so much national attention. The Standard reported that mainland websites were “euphoric” after the trial.^[5]

[edit] See also

• Yang Jia
• Weiquan movement
• Custody and repatriation
• 2008 Guizhou riot

[edit] External links

• Breaking on Twitter: Thugs Harrass and Detain Deng Yujiao Journalist
• chinadaily.com Deng Yujiao fan club
• Man’s death linked to unwanted sex advances
• Killing makes Chinese hostess a symbol of discontent
• Dueling statements in the Deng Yujiao murder case
• (Chinese)北京律师披露邓玉娇案“性侵犯细节”Google translation
• (Chinese)邓玉娇控告书Google translation

[edit] Additional source

This article contains Traditional Chinese text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Chinese characters.

• (Chinese)财经网:两记者采访邓玉娇案遭暴力阻拦Google translation
• (Chinese)公安部長拍板 鄧玉嬌被正式逮捕Google translation
• (Chinese)鄧玉嬌最新:律師見後痛哭失聲輪奸得逞了！？ 鄧玉嬌最新:律師哭了:他們喪盡天良！滅絕人性！Google translation
• (Chinese)鄧玉嬌出院後被警帶走　命案疑點重重Google translation
• (Chinese)鄧玉嬌明確表示曾受性侵　其律師呼籲及時取證 Google translation
• (Chinese)鄧玉嬌案使中國婦女權益成為焦點 華爾街日報中文網Google translation
• (Chinese)省委知情人透露：罗清泉19日已知邓玉娇案幕后凶手，来头更大Google translation
• (Chinese)邓玉娇捅破天了：“两邓案”成中国重要历史事件Google translation
• (Chinese)十万网民上街散步要求严惩黄德智声援邓玉娇
• (Chinese)如何處理鄧玉嬌案才能擱得平 新華網Google translation
• (Chinese)北京學者成立鄧玉嬌公民後援團 BBC中文網Google translation
• (Chinese)修腳女刺官 再掀聲討貪官網潮 BBC中文網Google translation

[edit] Reference