Originally posted by the Voice of America. Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America, a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in the public domain. China Rejects Appeal by Imprisoned Dissident A Chinese court has upheld a four-year prison sentence for one of the country`s most prominent rights activists. The Beijing Supreme People`s High Court rejected an appeal by rights advocate Xu Zhiyong, who was convicted in January of "gathering a crowd to disturb public order." Xu, a lawyer, had campaigned for the education rights of children and for officials to disclose their assets. The United States, the European Union and several rights organizations protested the conviction. __________________________________________________________________ [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/china-rejects-appeal-by-imprisoned-di ssident/1891063.html References 1. http://www.voanews.com/content/china-rejects-appeal-by-imprisoned-dissident/1891063.html