Xiang Xiaohan, a 19-year-old gay activist, was taken into custody early Saturday when police came to his hotel room and put him under administrative detention for 12 days on charges of organising an illegal rally on May 17.
His lawyer, Lin Qilei, released a statement: “He’s been put under administrative detention for 12 days on charges of organising an illegal rally. His mother is mentally ill and he looks after her. We’ve asked authorities to cut short his detention”. Lin advised that Xiang was being held in Changsha Detention Center. In China, people can be held without trial for at least one month, according to a report on the offficial IDAHO website quoting VOA News.
Beijing-based LGBT documentary-maker Queer Comrades posted a video on Youtube on Jun 5 saying: "On May 17, the International Day Against Homophobia & Transphobia (IDAHO), over a hundred LGBT people and allies from Beijing, Hong Kong, Guangdong, Chongqing, Hubei and Zhejiang gathered at the scenic river belt near Hexi University to fight for their rights and against discrimination. The event was held by the local LGBT rights organisation 'Hunan With Love', and was named '2013 China Mainland (Changsha) Anti-Discrimination Summer Event.'"
Xiang and three others were taken away by the local police on early Saturday morning, the day after the rally. The three were released on Saturday but Xiang was administratively detained.
Ah Qiang, a fellow gay rights activist who also attended the rally, said he believes Xiang was singled out because he is a prominent advocate for LGBT rights in the south of China.“He [Xiang Yuhan] was the organiser of the rally, he runs a community website for homosexuals and helped launch a similar event last year. He is very active and wants to keep hosting the event in the future,” Ah Qiang told VOA News.
Xiang told Queer Comrades after his release: "Next time they might detain me for 15 days. If that's what it takes to hold another event, then that's fine by me."
Similar demonstrations to commemorate IDAHO had also taken place in several cities across China, including Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou although no arrests have been reported elsewhere.