FILE - In this July 17, 2009 file photo, legal scholar Xu Zhiyong, is seen at a meeting in Beijing, China. Xu, one of China's most well-known civil rights advocates, has been formally arrested on charges of disrupting public order, as Beijing cracks down on grassroots efforts to build a civil society that may challenge its rule. Xu, a founder of the loosely organized New Citizens group, has called for people to hold monthly dinners to discuss China's constitution and other issues. Several citizen activists who want to hold public officials to account and champion the underprivileged stand trial this week in Beijing in cases reflecting an intense campaign under leader Xi Jinping to quash any potential threat to China’s one-party rule. (AP Photo/Greg Baker, File) AP Photo/Greg Baker, File\n
Legal scholar Xu Zhiyong at a meeting in Beijing, China, in July 17, 2009 file photo. (Image source: AP/Greg Baker, File)
Chinese policemen manhandle a photographer, center, as he photographs Zhang Qingfang, lawyer of legal scholar and founder of the New Citizens movement Xu Zhiyong speaking to the media near the No. 1 Intermediate People's Court, where Xu appeared for his verdict in Beijing Sunday, Jan. 26, 2014. (Image source: AP/Andy Wong)
A supporter, center, of Xu Zhiyong is detained by policemen while she gathers with other supporters near the Beijing's No. 1 Intermediate People's Court, where legal scholar and founder of the New Citizens movement Xu stands trial, in Beijing Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2014. (Image source: AP/Andy Wong)
