Chinese journalist Qi Chonghuai, who has been jailed since September 2007, has been handed an additional eight-year sentence on the same charges, in breach of Chinese law.

Until his detention in 2007, Qi had been working as a journalist and editor for different mainstream news media outlets, including the Fazhi Zaobao (“Legal System Morning News”), the Fazhi Ribao (“Legal System Daily”) and the Jizhe Guancha (“The Journalist Observer”). He also contributed to numerous other newspapers.

On 14 June 2007, Xinhuanet, the website of China’s official news agency Xinhua, carried a story by Qi which exposed alleged corruption by the Tengzhow city government. Tengzhou is a city in China’s Shandong province, where Qi was based. The article claimed that taxpayers’ money had been used to build a luxurious government building in Tengzhou and included photographs of the building taken by freelance photographer Ma Shiping.

On 8 June, Qi and Ma wrote an article for the website of the US-based Epoch Times newspaper, reportedly stating that a local government official had beaten up a woman for being late to work.

“The Chinese government should be thankful to the courageous journalists who contribute to fighting corruption in the country,” said IPI Press Freedom Manager, Anthony Mills. “It should encourage such reporting by bringing to justice those who engage in corruption, rather than silencing journalists with harsh prison sentences.

We are shocked at the additional eight years added to Qi’s sentence, which runs counter even to China’s own laws. Qi should be released at once.”

On 25 June 2007, Qi was detained and initially accused of “deception” for allegedly misrepresenting himself as a journalist. Later, on 2 August, he was charged with “extortion and blackmail”. On 13 May 2008, Qi was sentenced by the Tengzhou City Court to four years in prison for extortion and blackmail.

Ma Shiping was sentenced to one and a half years in prison and was released in 2009, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Qi was due to be released on 25 June 2011, after serving his four year sentence. On 9 June, the Tengzhou City Court issued a statement that Qi’s sentence had been prolonged to 12 years, instead of the original four, as he was found guilty on all charges, including fraud.

Human rights monitors have reported that Qi was regularly beaten and tortured while he was held in Tengzhou City prison. This stopped only when, following international pressure, in June 2009 Qi was transferred to Zaozhuang prison.