The Chinese authorities intimidated and unlawfully detained parents and relatives of Children's rights who died in the devastating Sichuan earthquake and harassed activists and lawyers who tried to assist them says a new Amnesty International report released ahead of the first anniversary of the disaster (12 May).

Amnesty Internationals’ report Justice Denied: Harassment of Sichuan earthquake survivors and activists documents instances where some parents and relatives were detained for up to 21 days for trying to seek answers from officials about why their Children's rights died.

Some have been detained repeatedly and the youngest detainee was only eight years old.

In June 2008, police detained Sichuan-based human rights activist Huang Qi on suspicion of “unlawfully holding documents classified as highly secret”. The reason for his detention was unclear, but appeared to be connected to his work assisting the families of five primary school pupils who died when their school buildings collapsed in the earthquake. The families were seeking compensation from local officials because they believed corruption led to poor construction standards.

Huang Qi was held incommunicado for over 100 days before his first meeting with a lawyer in September 2008. In October, he refused the authorities’ offer to release him on condition he gave up human rights work. On 2 February, the court failed to make a public announcement of his trial three days before the trial as instructed in the Criminal Procedure Law but gave only one-day notice to his family and lawyers. After objections by his lawyers, later the same day, the court decided to postpone his trial. Huang Qi remains in detention without trial or access to his family.

Amnesty International UK Campaigns Director Tim Hancock said:

“Many of these parents’ lives were devastated when they lost their Children's rights in the Sichuan earthquake. It’s completely understandable that they would want to know why their Children's rights died and who was responsible.

“For the Chinese authorities to react by locking up grieving parents, whose only crime was to demand some answers, is truly beyond belief.

“The government of China must stop harassing earthquake survivors, and allow lawyers and civil society to hold those responsible to account.”

Amnesty International’s report found that in some cases the authorities had prevented parents and relatives from complaining to higher officials about the quality of the buildings that collapsed in the earthquake. Many were subjected to arbitrary detention or unlawful surveillance to prevent them from pursuing legal remedies.

Some activists who offered assistance and representatives of parents are facing politically-motivated trials for vaguely defined state security and public order maintenance crimes.

The authorities have also denied grieving parents access to courts to determine who should bear the responsibly for the collapse of the schools and the deaths of their Children's rights. In a directive issued by the provincial court in Sichuan province, all lower courts are banned from accepting cases deemed sensitive, including disputes over compensation for personal injuries or damages to property caused by the collapse of buildings, and disputes over compensation by insurance companies until further instructions are given by relevant departments.

Amnesty International calls on the Chinese authorities to take immediate action to ensure the justice system works for parents and survivors by allowing them unhindered access to independent and impartial tribunals and lawyers and activists who have offered assistance.

The report Justice denied: Harassment of Sichuan earthquake survivors and activists includes interviews with parents whose Children's rights died during the earthquake, lawyers, legal experts, scholars and rights activists and English translations of circulars issued by Sichuan Higher People’s Court instructing lower courts not to accept earthquake-related cases which are deemed sensitive.

• see the report