Chinese blind activist out of US embassy amid war of words



BEIJING // A blind activist who took refuge in the United States Embassy in Beijing after escaping house arrest said he was told that Chinese authorities would beat his wife to death if he did not leave.

A US official denied that the threat was made, but said Chen Guangcheng was told his family would be sent back to the rural town of Shandong if he stayed in the embassy.

Mr Chen, speaking from the hospital room where he was taken after leaving the embassy, also said US officials told him his family would be sent back home if he stayed under their protection. But he added that, at one point, he was told his wife would be killed.

Mr Chen was taken to a Beijing hospital yesterday with the US ambassador, Gary Locke, shortly after the American secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, arrived in the Chinese capital for talks that start today.

Initial reports said that Mr Chen left the embassy after a deal that ensured his safety and that his family would be treated humanely and moved to a safe place.

Mr Chen’s case had threatened to overshadow the talks, which are likely to see Washington and Beijing grapple over issues including the nuclear programmes in Iran and North Korea, the violence in Syria and arms sales to Taiwan.

In a statement, Ms Clinton said Mr Chen would stay in China and begin a university course.

“Mr Chen has a number of understandings with the Chinese government about his future, including the opportunity to pursue higher education in a safe environment. Making these commitments a reality is the next crucial task,” she said.

“The United States government and the American people are committed to remaining engaged with Mr Chen and his family in the days, weeks and years ahead.”

China reacted by telling the US to “stop misleading the public” about Mr Chen’s case.

Mr Chen’s lawyer, Li Jinsong, said the activist, who has campaigned against forced abortions and sterilisations linked to China’s one-child policy, was “a free citizen” who would no longer be targeted by authorities.

Local officials had prevented the self-taught lawyer from leaving his home in Shandong province since he was released from a four-year prison sentence in September 2010, served over what rights campaigners said were trumped-up charges.

Some earlier reports suggested asylum in the US was Mr Chen’s only real option following his flight to the embassy.

The activist left the “of his own volition” after a six-day stay, according to China’s Xinhua news agency. It indicated Beijing was angry at the US handling of the case.

Liu Weimin, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, said Mr Chen was “taken into the embassy in an irregular manner, and that China expresses its strong dissatisfaction”.

“The US method was interference in Chinese domestic affairs, and this is totally unacceptable to China. China demands that the United States apologise over this, thoroughly investigate this incident, punish those who are responsible and give assurances that such incidents will not recur,” he said.

The US yesterday indicated it would not apologise, saying Mr Chen’s case was exceptional.

China may have agreed to Mr Chen remaining in the country without restrictions because he was not a threat to the regime, suggested Barry Sautman, a political analyst and associate professor at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

Unlike campaigners such as Liu Xiaobo, the jailed 2010 Nobel Peace Prize recipient, Mr Chen’s activism does not focus on large-scale political reform but is primarily about a single issue.

The central government insists it does not support forced abortions, and instead often blame local officials trying to meet local birth-control targets.

After Mr Chen’s flight to the embassy and his global media coverage, Mr Sautman said Chinese officials would be “very careful” how they treat the 40-year-old activist. The US has promised to monitor his case.

dbardsley@thenational.ae

* With additional reporting by Associated Press and Agence France-Presse

Emergency

Director: Kangana Ranaut

Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry 

Rating: 2/5

Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
 
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Essentials

The flights
Whether you trek after mountain gorillas in Rwanda, Uganda or the Congo, the most convenient international airport is in Rwanda’s capital city, Kigali. There are direct flights from Dubai a couple of days a week with RwandAir. Otherwise, an indirect route is available via Nairobi with Kenya Airways. Flydubai flies to Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, via Entebbe in Uganda. Expect to pay from US$350 (Dh1,286) return, including taxes.
The tours
Superb ape-watching tours that take in all three gorilla countries mentioned above are run by Natural World Safaris. In September, the company will be operating a unique Ugandan ape safari guided by well-known primatologist Ben Garrod.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, local operator Kivu Travel can organise pretty much any kind of safari throughout the Virunga National Park and elsewhere in eastern Congo.

The Sand Castle

Director: Matty Brown

Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea

Rating: 2.5/5

In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
  • Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000 
  • Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000 
  • Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000 
  • Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000 
  • HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000 
  • Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000 
  • Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000 
  • Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000 
  • Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000 
  • Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000 
  • Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000 
  • Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
  • Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
  • Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
Company Profile
Company name: OneOrder

Started: October 2021

Founders: Tamer Amer and Karim Maurice

Based: Cairo, Egypt

Industry: technology, logistics

Investors: A15 and self-funded 

Results:

Women:

1. Rhiannan Iffland (AUS) 322.95 points
2. Lysanne Richard (CAN) 285.75
3. Ellie Smart (USA) 277.70

Men:

1. Gary Hunt (GBR) 431.55
2. Constantin Popovici (ROU) 424.65
3. Oleksiy Prygorov (UKR) 392.30

The Energy Research Centre

Founded 50 years ago as a nuclear research institute, scientists at the centre believed nuclear would be the “solution for everything”.
Although they still do, they discovered in 1955 that the Netherlands had a lot of natural gas. “We still had the idea that, by 2000, it would all be nuclear,” said Harm Jeeninga, director of business and programme development at the centre.
"In the 1990s, we found out about global warming so we focused on energy savings and tackling the greenhouse gas effect.”
The energy centre’s research focuses on biomass, energy efficiency, the environment, wind and solar, as well as energy engineering and socio-economic research.

COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Cryopreservation: A timeline
  1. Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
  2. Ovarian tissue surgically removed
  3. Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
  4. Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
  5. Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
In numbers: China in Dubai

The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000

Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000

Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent

MATCH INFO

Juventus 1 (Dybala 45')

Lazio 3 (Alberto 16', Lulic 73', Cataldi 90 4')

Red card: Rodrigo Bentancur (Juventus)

COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Alaan%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202021%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Parthi%20Duraisamy%20and%20Karun%20Kurien%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20FinTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%247%20million%20raised%20in%20total%20%E2%80%94%20%242.5%20million%20in%20a%20seed%20round%20and%20%244.5%20million%20in%20a%20pre-series%20A%20round%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Race card

4pm Al Bastakiya Listed US$300,000 (Dirt) 1,900m

4.35pm Mahab Al Shimaal Group 3 $350,000 (D) 1,200m

5.10pm Nad Al Sheba Turf Group 3 $350,000 (Turf) 1,200m

5.45pm Burj Nahaar Group 3 $350,000 (D) 1,600m

6.20pm Jebel Hatta Group 1 $400,000 (T) 1,800m

6.55pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-3 Group 1 $600,000 (D) 2,000m

7.30pm Dubai City Of Gold Group 2 $350,000 (T) 2,410m

The National selections:

4pm Zabardast

4.35pm Ibn Malik

5.10pm Space Blues

5.45pm Kimbear

6.20pm Barney Roy

6.55pm Matterhorn

7.30pm Defoe

Match info

Uefa Nations League Group B:

England v Spain, Saturday, 11.45pm (UAE)