A Chinese local government yesterday invited medical experts from the US and Germany to help treat dissident Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo (劉曉波) for cancer, in a softening of its stance ahead of this week’s G20 summit in Germany.
Liu, 61, was jailed for 11 years in 2009 for “inciting subversion of state power” after he helped write a petition known as Charter 08 calling for sweeping political reforms.
He has been moved from jail to a hospital to be treated for late-stage liver cancer.
Photo: EPA
The hospital, in the northeastern city of Shenyang, made the decision at the request of the family and in consultation with the doctors already treating him, the Shenyang Bureau of Justice said in a short statement on its Web site.
It provided no other details. Officials who picked up the telephone at the hospital said they were unaware of the invitation.
A source close to Liu’s family said the invitation was a positive step that greatly increased transparency around his illness and the chance that he would receive the best possible treatment available.
“The fact that they specially chose the US and Germany suggests that the authorities are considering allowing Liu to travel to one of these two countries,” the source said, although there were still questions about how the doctors would be chosen and what access they would be allowed.
Asked if the move would lead to Liu leaving the country, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Geng Shuang (耿爽) told a regular briefing: “We hope other countries can respect China’s judicial sovereignty and not meddle in China’s internal affairs.”
Rights group Amnesty International said the move appeared in part “an attempt to limit international criticism,” even as the government continued to refuse to allow Liu to be treated overseas.
“Time is running out for Liu Xiaobo,” Amnesty International secretary-general Salil Shetty said. “It is not too late for the authorities to end this cruel farce. They must let Liu Xiaobo and his wife, Liu Xia (劉霞), travel abroad to get the medical treatment he so desperately needs.”
The move comes ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) attendance at a summit of the G20 nations in Hamburg, Germany, tomorrow and Saturday, where Xi is seeking to project Chinese leadership on issues such as climate change and free trade.
Diplomatic sources in Beijing say China has been nervous the issue over the Nobel Peace Prize winner could overshadow Xi’s appearance.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique