| Zheng Churan | |
| Birth Place: | Guangzhou, China |
| Nationality: | Chinese |
| Known For: | Feminist activism |
| Occupation: | Writer, activist |
Zheng Churan is a Chinese women's rights activist and feminist. Together with four other activists, she was detained, in March 2015, shortly before events planned for International Women's Day.[1] They are collectively known as the Feminist Five. In November 2016, she became one of the BBC's 100 Women 2016.[2]
In 2015, she and four other activists (Wei Tingting, Wang Man, Wu Rongrong, and Li Tingting, collectively known as the "Feminist Five"[3]) were detained by the Chinese government just prior to International Women's Day, the day they planned to execute a campaign against sexual harassment on public transportation.[4] All five women were released on bail after 37 days of detention.[5] Had they been convicted, the women could have faced up to three years in prison for "creating a disturbance".[6]
The BBC News highlights Zheng's contributions to organizing events, her support for women's rights. She is also reported to have fought for women to be given menstrual leave.[2]
In December 2016, Zheng wrote an open letter to Donald Trump warning him to avoid sexist behaviour in the future.[7]
She and Xiao Meili operate an online store selling original designs about feminism on Taobao called Dúpǐn Shāngdiàn (Chinese: 独品商店).
In 2018, she was the plaintiff in a defamation case against Kù Wán Shíyànshì (Chinese: 酷玩实验室), a Chinese independent media platform. They had previously accused Zheng Churan of running an international sex trafficking operation.[8] The case remains ongoing.
Zheng Churan continues to be an outspoken activist and prolific writer on feminist and human rights issues.[9] [10]
On March 20, 2019, at around 2 a.m., Zheng's husband Wei Zhili was taken away by the police. As a journalist and a labor activist, Wei was accused by the police of "disturbing public order" and needing "education" after being "brainwashed".[11] He worked with Chinese laborers to obtain government compensation after they had been stricken with pneumoconiosis from unsafe working conditions.[12] For days after Wei's arrest, his wife and parents were not informed of his whereabouts.[13]
After her husband's incarceration, Zheng began an online campaign to bring attention and raise awareness to Wei's case. She plans to run 10,000 kilometers and post a daily update of her progress on Twitter.[14]