International

Chinese Nobel Prizewinner's Wife Detained

Justin Velez

On Friday, October 8th Liu Xiaobo, a Chinese human rights activist, won the Noble Peace Prize. Shortly after informing him of his award, his wife Liu Xia, was placed under house arrest. All forms of communication were cut off in her home. Freedom Now, a U.S. based legislative counsel group, is attempting to arrange her release, which remains difficult since the Chinese government has been uncooperative. Liu Xiaobo had only recently been arrested by the Chinese Government and given an 11-year prison sentence, for “inciting subversion of state power.” He had called for political and human rights reform, and had acted as an advisor to the student protestors in Tiananmen Square. China, which does not recognize the incident, made sure that the news of the win was blacked out from all media outlets, so as not to appear in Chinese news. Human rights groups such as Amnesty International, and world leaders such as U.S. President Barack Obama, praised the award of the prize to Liu. The Chinese government however, is furious over the matter and says that the prize could jeopardize relations with Norway—the location where Noble Prizes are awarded annually.

• Noble Peace Prize: Prize given to an individual who has “done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses.”
• Tiananmen Square (1989): Student protestors gathered in Tiananmen Square for a pro-democracy rally and to voice dissatisfaction with the Communist Chinese government and its human right’s abuses. The Chinese government responded viciously, unleashing the Chinese military on the protestors killing and injuring hundreds.
• Black Out: Refers to government-controlled censorship of news. China is notorious—the not the only—for this practice, restricting sites such as Google, or news outlets like the BBC, from printing or showing certain content.

Additional Reading

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/10/10/china.nobel.wife/index.html