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China rights activist due this month
Staff writer, with CNA
Democratic Progressive Party
legislators Lin Chia-lung, left, and Yu Mei-nu, second left, hold a press
conference at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday, outlining the schedule
for the visit of Chinese human rights activist and lawyer Chen Guangcheng, who
is due to arrive in Taiwan on June 24.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng (³¯¥ú¸Û) is
scheduled to arrive in Taipei on June 24 for his first visit to Taiwan, Taiwan
Association for China¡¦s Human Rights (TACHR) president Yang Hsien-hung (·¨¾Ë§»)
said yesterday.
¡§Chen¡¦s visit is mainly aimed at promoting freedom and human rights,¡¨ Yang said,
adding that China had tried, but failed, to obstruct Chen¡¦s Taiwan trip.
A friend of Chen¡¦s, Du Bin (§ùÙy), a journalist and photographer who helped write
Chen¡¦s new book about life and death in China, was arrested by the Chinese
authorities recently on charges of illegal publishing, Yang said.
¡§I believe Du¡¦s arrest was largely related to Chen¡¦s plans to travel to Taiwan,¡¨
Yang added.
During his planned stay from June 24 to July 2, Chen is to visit major Taiwanese
civic groups promoting human rights and judicial integrity and is scheduled to
deliver speeches at the legislature, National Taiwan University and National
Cheng Kung University, Yang said.
Chen is set to be accompanied on the visit by members of his family.
Chen sparked a diplomatic tussle in April 2 last year when he fled house arrest
in rural China and sought refuge at the US embassy in Beijing.
The Chinese authorities subsequently agreed to let him leave for the US to study
in New York, along with his wife and two children.
Yang added that the TACHR also plans to invite Hu Jia (J¨Î), another Chinese
human rights activist, to visit Taiwan.
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