Chen Guangcheng, 34, had been sentenced to four years and three months after his conviction in August for damaging public property and disrupting traffic. He was confined to his home at the time by thugs, believed to have been deployed by local government officials.

One of his lawyers — barred from attending his trial — hailed the decision as a victory for democracy in China. Li Jinsong said: “It’s a victory for people all over China who are persecuted by corrupt officials.”

Mr Chen, blind since an illness in infancy, had enraged officials in Linyi in eastern Shandong province when he tried to organise a lawsuit on behalf of women forced to undergo late-term abortions and sterilisations in a crackdown on over-quota births.

An appeals court in Linyi overturned the verdict and ordered a retrial. Mr Li said he was optimistic now that Mr Chen, who was held under virtual house arrest for more than ten months before his trial, would receive a fairer hearing.

Yuan Weijing, Mr Chen’s wife, welcomed the news with cautious optimism, but noted that she remained under surveillance. She said: “I am very, very happy, whatever the outcome is going to be. I don’t know whether it will be a fair and transparent retrial, but at least we have another chance.”

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