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Nobel laureate Liu celebrates 55th
birthday in prison
AFP, BEIJING
Jailed Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo (¼B¾åªi) marked his 55th birthday yesterday in a
prison in northeast China, prompting renewed calls from rights groups for his
immediate release.
Liu was sentenced to 11 years in prison on Christmas Day last year on subversion
charges after co-authoring Charter 08, a petition calling for political reform
in one-party Communist-ruled China.
He was named the peace prize winner in October, sparking fury in Beijing, which
equated the Oslo-based Nobel committee¡¦s decision with encouraging crime. A
ceremony in Liu¡¦s honor was held in the Norwegian capital on Dec. 10.
Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD), an activist network based in Hong Kong,
said it wanted to ¡§take this opportunity to wish Liu Xiaobo a happy birthday and
to once again call for his immediate and unconditional release.¡¨
The group said in a statement that Liu was spending his first birthday at the
remote Jinzhou prison in Liaoning Province, but that he had not been free to
celebrate his birthday for the past two years.
Last year, he was in a Beijing detention center following his sentencing, and in
2008, he was under police surveillance outside the Chinese capital.
Rights groups have said that family visits to Liu at the prison have been
suspended, despite the fact that a monthly visit is guaranteed under Chinese
law.
Catherine Baber, Amnesty International¡¦s Asia-Pacific Deputy Program Director,
said both Liu and his wife, Liu Xia (¼BÁø), who remains under house arrest in
Beijing, should be freed.
¡§As the New Year approaches, we would reiterate our call for his release and the
release of his wife,¡¨ Baber told reporters. ¡§His continued imprisonment calls
into question the Chinese government¡¦s commitment to upholding international
human rights standards and continuing legal reform.¡¨
When asked for a response to calls for Liu¡¦s release, Chinese foreign ministry
spokeswoman Jiang Yu («¸·ì) told reporters: ¡§China is a country under the rule of
law. Competent authorities will work according to law.¡¨
¡§I believe Chinese judicial authorities will safeguard Chinese judicial
sovereignty,¡¨ Jiang said.
Attempts to reach Liu Xia by telephone yesterday were unsuccessful.
CHRD said Liu Xia¡¦s phone and Internet connections remained blocked and called
for all restrictions on her freedom to be lifted.
¡§There is absolutely no legal basis for any of the measures taken against her by
Beijing officials,¡¨ the group said. ¡§CHRD is concerned that Liu Xia may continue
to face illegal house arrest for an extended period of time, and we reiterate
our call for an immediate end to her persecution.¡¨
Liu Xiaobo¡¦s lawyer, Shang Baojun (©|Ä_x), told reporters that he too was unable
to reach Liu Xia.
¡§I can¡¦t get hold of her. I contacted her family last week. She¡¦s still in her
house in Beijing ¡X she¡¦s well, but there¡¦s no new news,¡¨ Shang said by
telephone.
Paris-based media rights watchdog Reporters Without Borders said China¡¦s
treatment of Liu Xiaobo as a ¡§dangerous criminal¡¨ was a ¡§stain¡¨ on its
international reputation.
¡§We hope that Liu Xiaobo can next year celebrate his 56th birthday in freedom
and with his family,¡¨ the group said in a statement.
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