Nearly six years after defacing a poster of Chinese President Xi Jinping in a bold act of protest, Dong Yaoqiong-widely known as the "Ink Girl"-remains missing, fueling growing concerns about her fate. Dong, who vanished following multiple detentions in psychiatric facilities, has not been seen or heard from since her last reported confinement in February 2021. Advocacy groups and human rights activists are calling for evidence that she is still alive, as fears mount that she may have met a grim fate.
Dong first captured international attention on July 4, 2018, when she livestreamed herself splashing black ink on a large poster of Xi Jinping in Shanghai. In the video, she denounced the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and called out what she described as Xi's dictatorship and oppressive regime. "I oppose Xi Jinping's dictatorship and tyranny. I oppose the Communist Party's brainwashing and suppression of me," she declared during the livestream, which she posted on Twitter, a platform banned in China but accessed through VPNs.
Shortly after the protest, Dong was arrested and forcibly taken to a psychiatric hospital, a tactic that human rights groups say the Chinese government often employs to silence dissidents. She was institutionalized multiple times-first in 2018, again in 2020, and most recently in February 2021 at the No. 3 Mental Hospital in Zhuzhou, Hunan province. Since then, her whereabouts have remained unknown, sparking speculation and concerns about her well-being.
The advocacy group Weiquanwang, or Rights Protection Network, released a report recently highlighting that there has been no update on Dong's status since her last detention, marking nearly 200 weeks of silence.
"This is not an isolated incident," Human Rights Watch Associate China Director Maya Wang told Newsweek. "The Chinese government has a long history of misusing psychiatric hospitals to jail dissidents and activists." Wang emphasized that in China, anyone can be held indefinitely in psychiatric facilities based on mere allegations by authorities, family members, or even employers, with little to no recourse to contest their confinement.
Dong's case took another tragic turn when her father, Dong Jianbiao, who had been vocal about his daughter's mental stability and opposed her detainment, was himself arrested. He died in prison under questionable circumstances in 2022. While Chinese authorities claimed he died of natural causes related to diabetes, reports from human rights activists and family members suggested otherwise. According to activist Chen Siming, who has since fled China, Dong Jianbiao's body bore signs of physical abuse, and his death was swiftly followed by a forced cremation.
The mystery surrounding Dong Yaoqiong's fate has sparked outrage among her supporters and activists, who have accused the CCP of systematically erasing her from public memory. Bitter Winter, a publication focused on religious and human rights issues in China, emphasized the importance of keeping her story alive to counter Beijing's attempts to silence her defiance. "Remembering may be the only way to keep her alive-unless she already died," the publication stated.
The tragic saga of the "Ink Girl" also points to a broader pattern of repression in China, where dissidents often face severe consequences for criticizing the government. Dong's case is emblematic of a system that targets its critics through a combination of detention, forced psychiatric treatment, and intense pressure on their families. Reports indicate that Dong's mother may have been coerced into agreeing to her daughter's internment, allegedly receiving a new home in exchange for her cooperation.
Human rights organizations argue that the use of psychiatric facilities for political ends is a violation of international law and a breach of human rights. They have called on Beijing to immediately release Dong if she is still alive and to allow independent oversight of her condition and treatment. "The intentional use of psychiatric institutions to suppress political dissent is a gross violation of human rights," Wang added.
As international pressure mounts, the Chinese government has remained silent on Dong's case, refusing to respond to inquiries from the media or advocacy groups. The CCP's lack of transparency and accountability in such matters continues to draw criticism from the global community, with calls for more stringent measures against Beijing's human rights abuses.
Dong Yaoqiong's protest, and her subsequent disappearance, has come to symbolize the lengths to which the Chinese government will go to silence dissent. Her defiance against Xi Jinping's regime, captured in that brief yet powerful livestream, may have cost her everything. As China continues to crack down on those who challenge its authority, the question remains: What happened to the "Ink Girl," and will we ever know her true fate?
