Urgent Appeal for the Immediate Transfer of Liu Xiaobo to the United States for Cancer Treatment
Chinese dissident icon and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Liu Xiaobo was imprisoned in 2009 for his role in the drafting and publication of Charter 08, a manifesto calling for the observance of human rights, the elimination of communist single-party rule, and the establishment of a democratic system of governance in People's Republic of China. Most recently, Dr. Liu has been diagnosed with advanced liver cancer and was placed medical parole. He and his wife Liu Xia have expressed desperate wishes for medical treatment abroad, which they are not allowed to access.
Intellectuals, activists, and leaders from all across the cultural, political, and geographic spectra-from the Dalai Lama to Marco Rubio--have condemned the Communist Party's decision to incarcerate Dr. Liu. Although the government granted him parole, the decision is in no way an act of compassion. Chinese human rights activists are voicing outrage instead of delight because the authorities remained silent and held Dr. Liu in custody until his cancer reached its terminal stage.
Dr. Liu's wife, a poet and artist, has also been under house arrest in Beijing since her husband received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2010. According to her circle of close friends, she has been suffering depression and heart diseases as a result of prolonged and severe isolation.
The bipartisan Congressional-Executive Commission on China declared in its Statement on the Medical Parole of Noble Prize Laureate Liu Xiaobo that "[Dr. Liu's] 8 years of imprisonment—due to his eloquent appeals for non-violent political reform and protection of basic rights—remain a travesty of justice and a stain on China's rights record. Liu Xiaobo, and countless others like him who courageously seek peaceful change in China, are heroes worthy of honor, not criminals deserving to be tortured or unjustly punished.”
Given the extreme urgency of his medical situation, we appeal to the White House and President Trump to seek immediate transfer of Dr. Liu and his wife to the United States for cancer treatment. This petition is authored by Chinese immigrants, and all are called to sign in support:
