Outspoken political activist Li Biyun, who once tried to stand as a candidate in local elections in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong, has been admitted to hospital following several fainting fits since being dumped at the side of a road from a moving vehicle on her release from detention, her sister said.
A court in Guangdong's Shunde city found Li guilty of "obstructing civic duties" but sentenced her to the same amount of time she had already been held, releasing her on Dec. 19.
Li, 47, who has already alleged torture at the hands of prison guards and police, was released from the police-run Shunde Detention Center, as there was no sentence for her to serve in prison.
Her sister Li Caiyun said Li was admitted earlier this week to Guangzhou's Fangcun Charity Hospital after collapsing and losing consciousness several times since her release.
"She has woken up but can't speak or move," Li Caiyun said. "In the three weeks since the government chucked her out at the roadside, she has fainted three times already."
Li sustained broken ribs during her year-long detention, but had been denied treatment at a police-run hospital, and was instead forced to wear manacles, her sister said.
She has since been coughing up blood, and is unable to walk due to leg injuries sustained during her "release" from detention, Li Caiyun said.
Alleged torture
Li's defense lawyer Liu Hao said he had a detailed account of the alleged torture she suffered at the hands of detention center guards in July.
"I don't think that she got justice at her trial, and that has to do with the state of the judicial system in this country," he said. "She described her torture in court, and we submitted a statement to the court."
"But the trial was held behind closed doors, and they only gave the lawyers a copy of the judgement; they had to go and pick it up afterwards," he said. "It was totally ridiculous."
Guangdong-based rights activist Li Jianxin said Li's supporters have already collected more than 4,000 yuan (U.S. $645) in donations to help her out, however.
"This all happened just because she stood up for her rights and tried to stand as an independent candidate, so she was charged with obstructing official duty and locked up," Li Jianxin said.
"Then, when they couldn't legally sentence her, they released her without informing her family, bundled her aboard a vehicle ... and threw her out," he said.
"She wasn't found for several hours, when she was taken to hospital."
He said Li's supporters would give her the money on a visit this week.
"She has been attacked, and beaten up in detention, and yet they still have no evidence against her," he said.
Independent candidate
In 2011, Li joined dozens of political activists across China in a campaign to file applications to stand for election to district-level National People's Congress (NPC) bodies, in spite of official warnings that there is "no such thing" as an independent candidate.
Activists tried to use a clause in the election rules which allows anyone with the endorsement of at least 10 constituents to seek nomination.
Many of the candidates, like Li, hailed from the least privileged groups in Chinese society, including those who have been forcibly evicted from their homes or who have long campaigned for their legal rights.
Apart from a token group of "democratic parties" that never oppose or criticize the ruling party, opposition political parties are banned in China, and those who set them up are frequently handed lengthy jail terms.
Reported by Xin Lin for RFA's Mandarin Service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie.