Chinese campaigner loses appeal

Mr Chen campaigned against official abuses

Leading Chinese human rights activist Chen Guangcheng has lost his final appeal against a conviction which supporters say was political.

Mr Chen was jailed in 2006 for four years and three months for damaging property and disrupting traffic.

But his lawyers said the real reason was Mr Chen's exposure of violations to China's one-child policy, including forced sterilisations and abortions.

Analysts say the case again shows China's refusal to tolerate dissent.

Mr Chen, 35, has campaigned against what he says are abuses of the Chinese government's one-child policy.

Mr Chen, who is blind, had accused local health workers in Linyi city, in Shandong province, of illegally forcing hundreds of people to have late-term abortions or sterilisations.

China brought in its one-child policy 27 years ago, in a drive to curb population growth, but forced sterilisation and abortion are prohibited.

Chinese authorities said in September 2005 that several health workers in Linyi had been arrested or sacked over the abuses.

But Mr Chen was put under house arrest around the same time, and in October 2005 was beaten up by unidentified assailants.