Liu Xiaobo was innocent, he died for us, says Chinese film maker
Ai also knows a thing or two about living under the watch of the authorities — her films are banned in China and she lives under constant surveillance at her home in Wuhan city.
Speaking to HT from Wuhan, Ai was frank about her evolving relationship with Liu.
They met in the 1980s and received their doctoral degrees from BNU. Then in 1989, the Tiananmen movement happened, where Liu was a key leader.
“We had sympathy for the students but could not take responsibility of fighting for the students. But Liu was very brave... He was a very rare intellectual,” Ai said. Liu was jailed soon after, and their paths didn’t cross for years.
“Our roads (to fighting for political freedom) were different. He was known as the dissident intellectual. I was working from within the system,” Ai said.
Returning to China in 2000 after a doing a course in the US, Ai began to focus more on human rights and individual freedom. “Liu saw some my documentaries and we realised we have common goals,” she said.
They never met face-to-face for years but by then, according to Ai, their aims had merged.
She met Liu for the last time at a Chinese restaurant in Beijing in October 2008. “We chatted about Charter 08 (a manifesto for political reform and individual freedom)... We didn’t think it was such a big idea then,” she said.
However, Charter 08 became a big headache for Chinese authorities after it was released — big enough for the government to crackdown on those who signed it. It led to Liu’s arrest under “subversion” charges in 2009 and his wife Liu Xia was put under house arrest soon after.
But Liu’s death wasn’t in vain, Ai said. “Liu died for us. He was innocent. He was a valuable man. We should remember him,” she said.