BEIJING - Confined to house arrest for seven months, Chinese activist Hu Jia still managed to use the Internet and telephone to chronicle the harassment of dissidents in his country before he was hauled off to jail last December.
His conviction and sentencing on subversion charges Thursday is the latest indication that China's leadership intends to clamp down hard on dissent ahead of this summer's Olympic Games in Beijing.
Hu, one of China's most prominent human rights advocates, was given 3 1/2 years in prison for "inciting state subversion,'' said his lawyer, Li Fangping. The evidence against Hu included five Internet articles he wrote and two interviews he gave to foreign media, Li said.
The sentence, though lighter than the five years expected, "is still unacceptable,'' Li said. Beijing routinely uses the charge of subversion to imprison dissidents for years.
A longtime critic of the government, Hu has been involved in civil liberties issues, from AIDS awareness to environmental rights and Tibet. In recent years, while largely under house arrest, he served as a hub linking activists across China with the outside world.
Last fall, Hu and activist lawyer Teng Biao authored an article accusing Beijing of failing to live up to a pledge made when bidding for the Olympics that it would improve human rights.
Hu's case drew more scrutiny for the human rights record of China's government, which has been facing criticism over its crackdown following widespread protests in Tibet and other parts of western China.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called Hu's conviction "deeply disturbing to the United States.'' Speaking while in Romania, she said putting Hu in jail was not in the interest of human rights, or of China.
John Kamm, whose San Francisco-based Dui Hua Foundation focuses on political prisoners in China, said he believes Chinese leaders are taking a hard line on criticism because of the unrest in Tibet, fearing that any concession would be viewed as weakness.
"I see no sign that the Chinese government is inclined to make concessions to international public opinion,'' Kamm said. "At the moment, they are not inclined to exercise a lighter touch. On the contrary, they seemed committed to a very tough line.''
He said the prosecution of Hu was the fastest on record: 98 days from detention to sentencing. "They don't want it lingering as the games approaches,'' he said.
The European Union wants Hu released immediately, EU spokesman William Fingleton said.
"We said clearly before the trial that he should not be detained in the first place, and he should be released,'' Fingleton said.
State Department spokesman Tom Casey said China "had an opportunity to put its best foot forward'' with the Olympics approaching.
"It has been disturbing to us that in this case someone who has been making efforts to engage in discussion of legitimate issues in the Chinese political system has not only not been allowed to do so but has been sentenced for those efforts,'' Casey said.
A spokeswoman for China's Foreign Ministry insisted the case "has been dealt with in accordance with law.''
"We will not stop the implementation of law because of the Olympic Games,'' spokeswoman Jiang Yu said, adding that she hoped outside groups would "not interfere with China's internal affairs by the excuse of human rights.''
Hu seemed calm as the sentence was read at Beijing No. 1 People's Intermediate Court, Li said, adding that his client had been "emotionally prepared'' for the verdict.
Hu has 10 days to appeal. His lawyer said a decision on making an appeal had not been made.
The court verdict said "Hu spread malicious rumours, and committed libel in an attempt to subvert the state's political power and socialist system,'' according to the official Xinhua News Agency.
No diplomats or journalists were allowed in the courtroom during the sentencing, but his wife -- Zeng Jinyan, also a rights activist -- their baby daughter and his mother were present.
A tearful Zeng said police had been watching her around the clock, making her even more worried about her husband's safety.
"If they can treat me like this so brazenly without any legal means, I can't imagine what they'll do next to me and Hu Jia when no one's watching. I'm terrified,'' she told The Associated Press outside her home in a complex called Freedom City.
In recent years, Hu had been a one-man clearinghouse for news on the treatment of other dissidents. Using the Internet and the phone, he detailed the harassment and detention of fellow activists to an international network.
Hu had been under house arrest at his Beijing apartment for more than 200 days before he was taken away by security agents Dec. 27.
His indictment cited comments he made during two interviews with foreign media and five articles he wrote that were posted on the Internet, including on Boxun.com, a Chinese-language site banned in China. The articles did not include Hu's Olympics critique from last fall.
Boxun.com, based in North Carolina, carries reports and essays on a wide range of issues rarely reported on in Chinese state media, from corruption cases to calls for democracy.
Human rights groups have charged that China has launched a mass campaign to silence critics ahead of the Olympic Games in August.
Amnesty International's Mark Allison condemned Hu's conviction as a betrayal of "promises made by Chinese officials that human rights would improve in the run-up to the Olympics.''
The verdict "serves as warning to any other activists in China who dare to raise human rights concerns publicly,'' he said.
