Lu was arrested in Wuhan, Hubei Province, after articles he wrote about rural unrest and official corruption appeared on various Internet news sites based overseas. On April 20, 2001, he was charged with “inciting to subvert state power,” a charge frequently used against journalists who write about politically sensitive subjects. Lu’s trial began on September 18. On December 30, 2001, he was sentenced to four years in prison. He is due to be released in March 2005.