Beijing snuffs memory of Liu
BEIJING: China warned supporters of Nobel Peace Prize-winning dissident Liu Xiaobo not to mark his death anniversary yesterday, while rights activists in Hong Kong gathered to keep his memory alive.
Liu died aged 61 on July 13 of last year in a hospital in the northern city of Shenyang under close guard by security agents, after he was denied permission to leave China for treatment for late-stage liver cancer.
He had been jailed in 2009 for “inciting subversion” after he helped write and circulate a pro-democratic reform proposal known as “Charter 08”, his last major act in a long career of activism beginning during the 1989 pro-democracy protests in Beijing.
Supporters of Liu and his widow, Liu Xia, in China said they had been unable to organise any large-scale event to mark the day and some have been “vacationed” by the authorities, a common practice where security agents take prominent dissidents away from cities during sensitive events to keep them quiet.
Hu Jia, a Beijing-based dissident who knew Liu Xiaobo, said that he was going to be taken to Chongli, four hours outside of Beijing.
“They said I could not go near the sea,” he said.
Liu Xiaobo was given an ocean burial, which prompted activists to flock to their nearest sea-shore to stage protests.
Three other friends of Liu, who declined to be named, said that they had been contacted by the authorities and told not to host memorial events or protests.
The Chinese state security could not be reached for comment on the matter.
In Hong Kong, a former colony that returned to China in 1997 with various freedoms not enjoyed on the mainland, around 20 people dressed in black and white marched to Beijing’s representative office to mark the anniversary of Liu’s death
They carried banners with a picture of Liu that read “Remember Liu Xiaobo” and placards calling for the release of dissident
Qin Yongmin, who was jailed on Tuesday
In Taiwan, supporters also unveiled a statue of Liu.