Chen Guangcheng, who has exposed forced abortions and sterilizations in villages as a result of China’s one-child policy, escaped house arrest in his Chinese village for American officials’ protection, ChinaAid activists said Saturday.
“This is a pivotal moment for US human rights diplomacy,†said Bob Fu, ChinaAid President. “Because of Chen’s wide popularity, the Obama Administration must stand firmly with him or risk losing credibility as a defender of freedom and the rule of law. If there is a reason why Chinese dissidents revere the US, it is for a moment like this.”
According to AP reports, Chen is a self-taught lawyer blinded by fever in infancy who served four years in prison for revealing forced abortions and sterilizations in his and surrounding villages. Since his release in September 2010, local officials confined him to his home, beating him up on several occasions.
Chen was widely admired by rights activists at home who last year campaigned to publicize his case among ordinary Chinese and encourage them to go to Dongshigu village and break the security cordon. Even Hollywood actor Christian Bale tried to visit, but was roughed up by locals. READ MORE:
Group: Blind Chinese Activist Under US Protection at npr.org