The Nobel Peace Prize is the only one of the Five Nobel Prizes awarded by Norway and the committee has a history of making controversial decisions which have been vindicated by history. The prizes have been awarded to (amongst others) the Burmese Leader Aung San Suu Kyi (as far back as 1991), the 14th Dalai Lama (Tenzin Gyatso), and the Irishman Sean McBride who has the distinction of being the only recipient of both the Nobel and Lenin Peace Prizes. Judging by the howling from the Chinese Dictatorship the committee have got it right again with the award of the 2010 prize to Chinese dissident and author of Declaration 08, Liu Xiaobo.
Naoto Kan, the Japanese prime minister, joined the US, Germany and several other European nations in criticising the imprisonment of Liu Xiaobo and calling for greater freedom in China. China accuses pro-democracy activist Liu Xiaobo of inciting a rebellion. Mr Kan called on China to respect universal human rights, adding that it would be “desirable” to release the 54-year-old former literature professor who was jailed for 11 years last December on charges of “inciting subversion of state power”.
China expressed outrage last week over the Nobel committee’s decision to award its prestigious Peace Prize to incarcerated Chinese human rights activist Liu Xiaobo. But the real outrage is China’s treatment of those who dare to speak truth to power. We should be thrilled for Liu and the spotlight the award places on his unrelenting fight for fundamental freedoms and human rights in China. But Liu won’t be able to celebrate his win with the rest of the world from the confines of his prison cell.
Adding insult to injury, Chinese authorities have placed Liu’s wife Liu Xia under house arrest, likely preventing her from receiving the award in Norway on Liu’s behalf. They’ve also cracked down on activists celebrating Liu’s achievement. Liu Xiaobo needs your help.
Liu, a 54-year old author and scholar, is a prominent government critic who has repeatedly called for human rights protections, political accountability and democratisation in China. In 2009 Liu was charged with "inciting subversion of state power" and given an 11-year prison sentence after an unfair trial for co-authoring a proposal for political and legal reform in China.
Amnesty International has long called for Liu’s release. We need now more than ever to send a loud and clear plea for Liu’s release.
The tanks of Tiananmen Square
Urge Chinese authorities to release Liu Xiaobo immediately.
This award can only make a real difference if it prompts more international pressure on China to release Liu, along with the numerous other prisoners of conscience languishing in Chinese jails for exercising their right to freedom of expression. Now is the time to act.
Numerous human rights organizations maintain a litany of grievances against the Chinese government. Controversial human rights issues in China include policies such as capital punishment, the one-child policy, the social status of Tibetans, and lack of protections regarding freedom of press and religion. One of the foremost areas of concern is a lack of legal rights, for want of an independent judiciary, rule of law, and due process. Another prominent area of concern is lack of labour rights, which is related to the hukou system, the absence of independent unions, and discrimination against rural workers and ethnic minorities. Yet another area of concern is the lack of religious freedom, highlighted by state clashes with Christian, Tibetan Buddhist, and Falun Gong groups.
See also;
Tiananmen Square – Nothing Happened Here
http://daithaic.blogspot.com/2009/06/tiananmen-square-nothing-happened-here.html
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