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Chen Guangcheng, while in protective custody of the U.S. Embassy in Beijing on May 2 after escaping house arrest in Shandong province.
Chen Guangcheng, the blind Chinese lawyer who escaped house arrest and now is expected to leave his country for the United States, says that police have detained his sister-in-law and a nephew in retaliation against his high-profile case, The Guardian reported on Thursday.
Chen’s escape in May from his home village in Shandong province, only to resurface in U.S. protective custody at the American Embassy in Beijing exposed the harsh tactics of local officials, embarrassed China’s security apparatus, and forced the start of awkward diplomatic wrangling over his pursuit of refuge.
According to the Guardian, Chen is no longer concerned about his own safety, but worried about relatives left behind.
"The crazy retaliation against my family has started," he told the Guardian by phone. "My sister-in-law was arrested and is now released on bail. They have accused her of harboring a fugitive, but they didn't say who."
Chen’s nephew is under investigation over the stabbing of village security agents who entered his home in search of the fugitive.
Chen is expected to travel to the United States after China’s foreign ministry said it would accept his bid to study abroad. He has been offered fellowships at New York University and the University of Washington.
A network of human rights activists in China said the retribution against Chen is extensive, the Associated Press reported.
Chinese Human Rights Defenders told AP that about a dozen of Chen's relatives in his home village of Dongshigu are under some form of house arrest, including Chen's cousin and the cousin's son.
"Even when the international spotlight is on Chen, his extended family has been cut off from communicating with the outside world, and his nephew is in police custody," said Wang Songlian, a researcher with the group, AP reported. "What is going to happen once the spotlight shifts? It is extremely worrying."
Chen is a self-taught legal activist who gained recognition overseas for battling forced abortion in his province and championing the rights of the disabled. He has served four years in prison on what many observers believe were trumped up charges. After his prison release, local officials kept Chen and his wife and young daughter under house arrest during which time both of the adults say they suffered physical abuse.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Man, talking about bad government, that is a "PIGOTRY" - government by pigs, for pigs, and of pigs.
"I see", said the Blind Man.
And it is pigotry when the United States Department of Justice involves itself in the cruel and unusual punishment of an innocent American law student/reporter whose family didn't do anything but Washington wanted her "roughed up" so she would quit ratting on them. Police did the same thing to her and her family.
Did you hear about that in the news anywhere?
Nearly killed her, they did - fractured her ribs, dragged her, denied water and toilet, beat her up every 6 months or so to shut her up.
But, the cases are out there for the public to read. Those that knew her when she taught Sunday School and was a preacher's wife know she's telling the truth.
That's Pigotry 101.
The Vietnamese government is doing exact same thing here. They will do whatever it takes. In the past, they frame people any crimes and then tortures anyone remotely related to the person. Reeducate camp, house arrest, whatever they name it, it's always results in the same thing of either life-time labor or harshest punishment.
These people are not concerned with the laws, they control the media, they harass witnesses. Unlike US where there are people who may speak up, in Vietnam or China, you speak up are the same as rebel against the government.
Now wait a damn minute!!! THEY are not concerned with the law? I hate to break it to you Nguyen, but it was this guy who BROKE CHINESE LAW. Unlike the United States, China is not run by a bunch of religious maniacs that think it OK keep breeding like freaking RABBITS until we have no resources left. And one thing about the Chinese, they are NOT stupid. They know the incredible dangers that Christianity brings to any country. Yet they still do not ban them. Just tell them to keep in inside their Churches. But protecting the planet and just worshiping their God is not enough for them. Christians want to be active to that they can overthrow a government. Been doing it over and over for 1,500 years. This guy worked for an exclusively Christian organization (that is part of the American Government), whose sole purpose was to undermine the Chinese system.
Now Nguyen, Lets talk about all the people killed in YOUR country by an American Government interested in all the oil that is now being extracted in the South China Sea. Wanna chat about THAT sport? The United States intelligence community inserted this guy (picked a blind guy for the sympathy), into their system for the sole purpose of causing disruption in the country. Destabilization its called and the US Government has been doing it around the world for generations.
Now wait a damn minute!!! THEY are not concerned with the law? I hate to break it to you Nguyen, but it was this guy who BROKE CHINESE LAW. Unlike the United States, China is not run by a bunch of religious maniacs that think it OK keep breeding like freaking RABBITS until we have no resources left. And one thing about the Chinese, they are NOT stupid. They know the incredible dangers that Christianity brings to any country. Yet they still do not ban them. Just tell them to keep in inside their Churches. But protecting the planet and just worshiping their God is not enough for them. Christians want to be active to that they can overthrow a government. Been doing it over and over for 1,500 years. This guy worked for an exclusively Christian organization (that is part of the American Government), whose sole purpose was to undermine the Chinese system.
Now Nguyen, Lets talk about all the people killed in YOUR country by an American Government interested in all the oil that is now being extracted in the South China Sea. Wanna chat about THAT sport? The United States intelligence community inserted this guy (picked a blind guy for the sympathy), into their system for the sole purpose of causing disruption in the country. Destabilization its called and the US Government has been doing it around the world for generations.
Carlo,
Right...the US is the real evil empire and anything bad that happens in other countries is due to some form of interference or direct action by the US...
So, which government do you work for again?
Ron, it never ceases to amaze me to see ostensible liberals, not just stand up for, but vociferously defend, illiberal regimes.
@Carlo Caraluzzo
Perhaps you should live in China or Vietnam first before you speak up. Oh, he is breaking the laws, the very fact that he speaks against the corruption of the government is also "breaking the law". Laws are subjective and the government can frame him for any number of crime.
I don't like Christian as well, but you should learn real facts that Christian here are different than Christian in the US. They are not a bunch of bigot, hate filled people, these people come to these countries to help. Yes, the spread of Christian are terrible since there are always those that will abuse the power, but the missionaries here come to help people, not spread hatred. They are what you called the true spirit of being a Christian, not those pretenders in the US.
@Carlo
Actually he was trying to work within the system of laws the Chinese had to stop the local government from breaking its own laws.
The tax payer will end up supporting this guy, then his family of ten or so who will need asylum.
Then they'll give them all government jobs, where they can ferret the system till death (tax payers death).
He has been offered fellowships by two different universities so I am assuming that they are going to be paying him a salary. This should keep him off the government dole, at least for as long as the fellowship lasts, which I believe is usually a year. I believe that the plan is for him to then return to China after everything has died down. Of course the odds on that happening are probably 50-50 at best. Once Chen and his family are here, I think it is highly doubtful that they will ever leave. At least in his case he should be able to support himself. I just hope that the administration is not going to start offering refuge to his entire extended family. The US can not afford to continue to be the refuge for every dissident and malcontent in the world.
The Chinese central government definitely needs to do something about the local officials in Chen's home village. They seem to be a bunch of out of control thugs and even by Chinese standards seem to be atrocious when it comes to human rights. China can not afford to continue to allow these out of control local officials to be an embarrassment to the country in the eyes of the international community. With the Chinese economy slowing, the last thing they can afford is any kind of call for boycotting Chinese products by the international community that would further slow their economic growth. Even a mildly successful call for a boycott could have serious implications for their economy.
Then they'll give them all government jobs, where they can ferret the system till death (tax payers death).
Yeah, I'm sure when he was locked up for four years in Chinese prison the first thing he was thinking was how he could milk the American taxpayer.
Really.
I'll say this about China and their prisons: They make ours look like five star hotels. You see how they treat civilians innocent of any crimes, think about how they treat criminals.
China's prison is the same as Vietnam. Life-time of manual labor, you eat food with dirt, spoiled fish and such.
I had been in Cambodia's prison system when I was 5 years old with my mother when we tried to escape the war. It took us 6 months to contact my grandmother who sent money to get us out. Needless to say, I still remember the food, vegetable's soups with dirt in it, spoiled fish and little rice mixed with dirt.
And yes, like poster above, the US prison system is like 5 stars hotel compared to what they have in China, Vietnam.
@thx
I seriously don't understand where people like you are coming from. Have you no compassion? The U.S. government spends $3.6 trillion a year. Helping this man costs very, very little in comparison. In addition he was offered fellowships to two universities.
The tax payer will end up supporting this guy, then his family of ten or so who will need asylum.
I totally agree. If he did not want his family to suffer, he should have thought about not coming here in the first place.
Now it's wha wha wha....I want ALL my family and friends here with me....and my dog, while we are at it.
All of them with jobs and free housing, if you do not mind.
Sorry to be this cynical, but we, the people of this country just had ENOUGH of our politicians trying to tell others how to live their lives, as if we are the example of respect, honesty and collaboration.
Why should we pay for him? If he is an activist from another country, let him stay there. Let Americans get scholarships. Get out Mr. Chen Guangcheng
He is advocating for people who wants to have more babies than they can support and be a burden to the government and tax payers. Last time I checked there were plenty of those here in America, so naturally he has abundant support.
GEEZ, he is not even HERE yet, aweo as you acknowledge, so it would be a little hard for him to "get out." Would you have taken the same stance toward people from Eastern Europe seeking asylum from the Nazis? Mr. Chen is a well educated man, a doctor before he became a self taught lawyer. He will undoubtedly be able to take care of himself here and has a few things he can teach us about what is going on in China, so I have no problem with his coming here with his immediate family. However, he's got to understand that we cannot take in all of China along with him!
This is what U.S.A. needs, another LAWYER.!!!
But doctors we can use!
Where was it that I read " Give us your broken hearted and we will give them hope" This is Freedom at it's best. God Bless the USA.
Amen. Most of the people commenting here have no idea what America stands for. They are just insular, ignorant and a little bit selfish.
Is he broken hearted or a very vocal disadent that can aggitate relations between the U.S.A. and China?
I wonder if Andre Sakharov would have endured such putrid abuse (my guess would be yes, considering the people and posts connected to them).
thx 10-58
you are so so right!!! What the hell is it the USA's business what is happen in "Communist China"
What did the inscrutable Mr. Chen think was going to happen to his family when he escaped house arrest, showed up at the US Embassy and expressed a desire to jump on Ms. Clinton's plane?
He's an activist in a police state who escaped house arrest and showed up at the American embassy seeking asylum and he's surprised that his family is being targeted?
More for the U.S. tax dollars wasted.
Soon he will claim half of china is his relatives and they are being abused by the government and they need to leave ASAP.
I was having weird thoughts from when I watched WCW in the last five years it was around. I am curious if Chen Guangcheng had ever been to one in America? I do feel bad for his family and hope the best and I believe if he does not act out then he will be ok and so will be his family. But I thought I saw him at an event of WCW of TV once, or maybe I’m crazy. I almost think a lot of the people in the news had been to one and been on TV, some even people on trial for crimes. Makes me think how weird things work.
What did he expect? That China would roll out the red carpet for his family now and treat them like royalty?
Don't know.
1. He's not a lawyer - didn't sit for any bar exam
2. Worse happened to a US law student here in the states - she wound up with broken bones and more - all media suppressed that story and this one was published as a distractor
3. You all know and won't do anything about it - but will favor this alleged Chinese Dissident in her face while she reads this article in horror
4. The United States is guilty of human rights atrocities against her and her family
5. You don't care about her, because she is a legal US citizen, and her plight will not bring you foreign revenue.
@Mackie
not saying you're lying or anything about that law student, but a little more info could help like a name and such.
wow imagine that, pigs being pigs, doesn't matter where they are pigs are pigs.....
Keep letting them come here, do we not have enough of them here already. Maybe its time for the US to quit sleeping with China...Take care of our own first.
What did this moron think was going to happen ????
I’d like to create a tip to MSNBC and the news and others that people like Casey Anthony and people with and against her in court were at or appeared at WCW events around the same time as fans. This would be mainly for me and what I saw during the years of 1998,1999 and 2000. Also the Trayvon Martin family and Mr. Zimmerman and his brother and others then may have been to a WCW event and even the same one before. Also Adam Mayes seems to me to have been to a WCW event too and with Gary and his wife and others. I don’t remember what happened but I get an odd feeling that a lot of people who have had crimes committed against themselves were at a WCW event that are in the news. I’d like people to look into it because if true may help in cases in court.
I believe that George Zimmerman had behavioral problems at WCW events during 1998,1999 and or 2000.
So... are we going to send China our beloved Private Manning? Seems fair, given the current situation. Maybe he can have fellowships in schools over there, but their pay isnt as good as our universities
Well...sounds like he should have thought that one through. Life for activists sucks in China and he should have seen (figuratively) that card being played. So yay, he's free...now a whole bunch of his family will suffer.
Careful what you wish for buddy...now others are suffering.
China has an atrocious humans rights record and reprisal is part of the deal. He must have figured that out before he pulled this stunt.
pretty good scam, pick a fight with your government and then get asylum in the us for you and entire family
The Chinese government has its own population control policy. Chen broke the law. The US Government should not interfere with Chinese internal affairs. He is not a scholar, nor a lawyer. He can not speak English,nor can understand English. He was offered fellowships in the US. It was purely for the political reason. He can not contribute to this country. It is very obvious that he and his family want to stay in this country.
Since when have the Chinese followed their own laws? You know, about rule of law, corruption, that sort of thing? Considering he outwitted the very people tasked to detain him speaks volumes about his intellect. As to contributing to our country, I'd say he'd do a lot better than a lot of our own...particularly a few of the posters on this forum...even me.
Mr. Chen needs tto do the right thing then --he needs to return to China--he knew going this route that there would be issues. He needs to continue this saga back home. He should have gone to Hong Kong or maybe Tiawan but nopw all of sudden he is concerned about this dilemna-
What about the Chinese government doing the right thing? Do unto others, you know...
Very disturbing, to say the least. You know what is also disturbing? We the United States are enablers. Who granted China Most Favored Nation trade status? Who do we give billions of dollars for Chinese goods (possibly manufactured by political prisoners)?
At least the fact that a BLIND man was able to elude his jailers in plain sight (pardon the pun) will make the public glare of embarrassment to much for the Chinese people to ignore, and for them to actually question their government as we do now.
Thank you US. I am so glad he's on his way and when he get's there you can't send him back he is yours now. God bless America the land of the idiots...