Renowned artist Gao Shen’s case for allegedly infringing the reputation of heroic martyrs to be sentenced at Hebei’s Sanhe City Court on August 25, 2026

（Rights Defense Network Information Center report）On August 22, 2026， this outlet learned：the Sanhe City Court in Hebei Province is scheduled to announce its verdict at 9 a.m. on August 25, 2026（next Tuesday） in the case of renowned artist Gao Shen, who is charged with infringing the reputation of heroic martyrs。

On August 26, 2024, renowned artist Gao Shen（the older brother of the Gao brothers） was criminally detained on suspicion of infringing the reputation of heroic martyrs while returning to China to visit family。He was later formally arrested and prosecuted。On December 14, 2025， a lawyer’s application for bail pending trial in Gao Shen’s case was rejected， and the procuratorate recommended a three-year sentence。The case was heard behind closed doors at the Sanhe City Court on March 30, 2026， the authorities did not allow family members to attend， and no verdict was issued。

After Gao Shen was arrested， UK-based writer Ma Jian launched a global petition in support of him， calling on the authorities to release Gao Shen immediately。The petition has received signatures of support from nearly 200 writers and artists。His wife is still subject to border controls; for alleged reasons involving “national security”， she cannot leave China。Their seven-year-old son, who is a U.S. citizen, is still unable to return to New York to attend school。

Gao Shen：Born on May 10, 1956， a native of Jinan City, Shandong Province， renowned Chinese sculptor， scholar living in the United States， dissident， political prisoner detained in China。

Early on， because the Gao family suffered catastrophe during China’s Cultural Revolution, their father was persecuted to death in 1968, at the height of the “Cultural Revolution,” planting a deep shadow in the minds of the two brothers while they were still young；after the reform and opening-up period, he and his younger brother Gao Qiang（known as the “Gao brothers”） gradually became among China’s most renowned artists, and their political positions left firm and clear marks on their works；since 1985， the Gao brothers have worked together, engaging in artistic activities including painting, installation, performance, and photography，but because their sculptures and paintings often address sensitive political issues, although the two brothers believe that this is merely their expression of views about society in the course of making art, it touched the sensitive and fragile nerves of the Chinese Communist authorities；in February 1989， while participating in an art exhibition in Beijing, they signed Fang Lizhi’s open letter to Deng Xiaoping, and were consequently monitored by the Chinese Communist authorities as political dissidents，causing the two brothers to remain subject to border controls when traveling abroad from 1989 to 2003，until the restrictions were lifted in 2004；since Xi Jinping took power in 2012，as the authorities have continuously strengthened controls over the speech of domestic dissidents and public intellectuals, particularly after the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of the Chinese Communist Party passed the Law on the Protection of Heroes and Martyrs in April 2018（intended to hold citizens legally responsible for insulting or defaming the names, portraits, reputations, and other attributes of heroes and martyrs, and implemented from May 1 of the same year）, sculptures created by the two brothers through years of collaboration, including Shooting Christ, the Miss Mao Series, and Mao Kneeling in Repentance, became targets for the authorities’ forceful suppression；

On August 26, 2024， because he had returned to China to visit family, he was taken away from his personal studio in Yanjiao and criminally detained by police in Sanhe, Langfang City, Hebei Province, on suspicion of “infringing the reputation and honor of heroic martyrs,” and has been unreachable since；his wife and child were subsequently barred from leaving the country as a result of being implicated, and police blocked the family’s efforts to seek assistance from the U.S. Embassy in China；his works, property, and studio were all sealed off, while his friends and those who helped him were silenced or forced to sign statements of guarantee；on October 7 of the same year, an artist colleague and friend, interviewed by the media, reportedly suggested that he had likely already been formally arrested by the procuratorate；his case was later prosecuted by the local Sanhe City Procuratorate, transferred to the Sanhe City Court for review, and a three-year sentence was recommended；on August 16, 2025, it was learned that his case was about to be heard, but the hearing was repeatedly postponed；on March 30, 2026，his case was formally tried behind closed doors at the Sanhe City Court, and requests by family members and representatives of the European Union to attend were rejected；the trial has concluded, but no verdict has yet been issued；his case has attracted international attention, and the Human Rights Foundation, Amnesty International, and a joint petition signed by more than 20,000 people have all called on the Chinese government to release him。

He is currently detained at the Sanhe City Detention Center（west of Gaogezhuang Village, Juyang Town, Sanhe City, Langfang City, Hebei Province，postal code：065201）。

This outlet will continue to follow Mr. Gao Shen’s situation。