A blind activist's escape from house arrest has drawn a line under flaws in China's legal system, at a time when the nation's leaders have been pledging to enforce the rule of law. How the Communist Party deals with Chen Guangcheng will be a test of its commitment to the cause. WSJ's Angela Yeoh reports from Beijing.
Blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng left the U.S. Embassy in an unusual deal under which he would stay in China, but within hours Mr. Chen and his allies were questioning the deal's pledge of safety and challenging U.S. handling of the case.
Enlarge Image
Close US Embassy Beijing Press Office/Associated PressChen, with U.S. Ambassador Gary Locke, center, and U.S. diplomat Kurt Campbell, right, at the embassy Wednesday.
A day of twists began early Wednesday, when U.S. officials said after days of silence that Mr. Chen had been under American protection since last week and had left of his own accord to seek medical treatment. They asserted that under a deal with the Chinese, reached on the eve of high-level talks between U.S. and Chinese officials, authorities would let Mr. Chen and his family settle in an unspecified place in China far from the local authorities in Shandong province whom he fled on April 22.
No comments:
Post a Comment