Lei Chen | |
---|---|
Lei Chen ( Chinese: 雷震; pinyin: Léi Zhèn; 8 July 1897 – 7 March 1979) was a Chinese politician and dissident who was the early leading figure in the movement to bring fuller democracy to the government of the Republic of China.
Born in Zhejiang in 1897, [1] Lei was educated at Kyoto Imperial University in Japan. His early political career included posts as the secretary-general of the National Political Assembly and Constituent National Assembly . [2] He also served on the Control Yuan, [3] as minister without portfolio, and presidential adviser. [2]
Lei Chen helped found and produce the periodical Free China, published beginning in 1950. [4] [5] Lei was expelled from the Kuomintang in 1954. [6] Six years later, he founded the China Democracy Party with Hsu Shih-hsien and Huang Hua, among others. [7] [8] Shortly thereafter, Lei was charged with sedition and jailed. [9] The charges are widely regarded as having been falsified by the Taiwan government and its then-ruling party the Kuomintang in response to Lei Chen's criticisms. [10]
He was released in 1970 [11] and died on 7 March 1979, aged 82. [12] [13] He was married to Sung Ying, who had also served on the Control Yuan. [14] Lei was posthumously exonerated by the Transitional Justice Commission in May 2019. [15] [16]
Lei Chen | |
---|---|
Lei Chen ( Chinese: 雷震; pinyin: Léi Zhèn; 8 July 1897 – 7 March 1979) was a Chinese politician and dissident who was the early leading figure in the movement to bring fuller democracy to the government of the Republic of China.
Born in Zhejiang in 1897, [1] Lei was educated at Kyoto Imperial University in Japan. His early political career included posts as the secretary-general of the National Political Assembly and Constituent National Assembly . [2] He also served on the Control Yuan, [3] as minister without portfolio, and presidential adviser. [2]
Lei Chen helped found and produce the periodical Free China, published beginning in 1950. [4] [5] Lei was expelled from the Kuomintang in 1954. [6] Six years later, he founded the China Democracy Party with Hsu Shih-hsien and Huang Hua, among others. [7] [8] Shortly thereafter, Lei was charged with sedition and jailed. [9] The charges are widely regarded as having been falsified by the Taiwan government and its then-ruling party the Kuomintang in response to Lei Chen's criticisms. [10]
He was released in 1970 [11] and died on 7 March 1979, aged 82. [12] [13] He was married to Sung Ying, who had also served on the Control Yuan. [14] Lei was posthumously exonerated by the Transitional Justice Commission in May 2019. [15] [16]