Blind justice in China
After blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng was booted from (er, voluntarily left the protection of) the U.S. Embassy in Beijing on Wednesday, he expressed fears for his own safety and the safety of his family, raising questions about whether or not U.S. government officials caved to pressure from China.
Chen reportedly received help from U.S. embassy officials to evade Chinese security forces outside the embassy (in place as much to prevent embarrassing dissident petitions for asylum as to protect American facilities and personnel), but after the news of his escape from Chinese surveillance became public, China applied diplomatic pressure and Chen was turned out into the street (okay, to a hospital, for treatment of an injury he incurred during his escape).
U.S. officials say Chen never requested asylum in the U.S., but Chen is now saying he has changed his mind.
Roberto De Vido is a communications consultant, writer, cartoonist and jack of many trades. The former chief of Tucson Sentinel’s East Asia Bureau, he now lives in California (make of that what you will).
“This is totally unacceptable to China.”
— Liu Weimin, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman
