Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo wins Nobel Peace Prize
Oct. 12, 2010
Imprisoned Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo has been awarded the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize ''for his long and nonviolent struggle for fundamental human rights in China,'' the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced Friday in Oslo.
Liu, the first Chinese to win the prestigious prize, is a key author of Charter 08, a democratic manifesto that called for sweeping political change in China. He is currently serving an 11-year prison term for ''inciting subversion of state power.''
''For over two decades, Liu Xiaobo has been a strong spokesman for the application of fundamental human rights also in China,'' Nobel Committee chairman Thorbjoern Jagland said in a statement.
''Through the severe punishment meted out to him, Liu has become the foremost symbol of this wide-ranging struggle for human rights in China,'' he said.
Liu has been detained repeatedly by Chinese authorities over his two decades of activism, including involvement in the 1989 Tiananmen pro-democracy protests.
The 54-year-old democracy activist, writer and former lecturer was a hot favorite among bookmakers to win the 2010 prize, whose contenders included Afghan women's rights activist Sima Samar and Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai.
U.S. President Barack Obama took the prize in 2009 and previous winners have included Myanmar's detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and South African statesman Nelson Mandela.
In Beijing, the awarding of this year's peace prize to an imprisoned dissident did not go down well with the Chinese government.
''Liu is a criminal who has been sentenced by Chinese judicial authorities for violating Chinese laws. His actions have gone against the purpose of the Nobel Peace Prize,'' Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said in a statement.
Awarding him the prize will damage China-Norway relations, he added.
But Jagland, a former Norwegian prime minister who currently heads the Council of Europe, said the Nobel Committee ''has long believed that there is a close connection between human rights and peace.''
''Such rights are a prerequisite for the 'fraternity between nations' of which Alfred Nobel wrote in his will,'' he said.
Later Friday, Norway's foreign ministry said China had summoned Norway's ambassador in Beijing to protest the award, according to Reuters news agency.
''They wanted to officially share their opinion, their disagreement and their protest,'' a ministry spokeswoman in Oslo was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, Liu's wife Xia, after hearing that her husband won the prize, called it ''unbelievable.''
''This is not only an award for him but also for everyone in China who has been fighting for democracy, freedom and peace and for the prisoners of conscience,'' she told Hong Kong's Cable TV in a live telephone interview from her Beijing home.
She said she plans to visit him in prison Saturday to tell him the news, adding that she hopes the award can help shorten his prison term as more people will press China for his release.
Dozens of police officers were stationed outside Liu's home and she was prevented from leaving it to speak with reporters.
Liu was taken away from his home by authorities in December 2008, just before the release of Charter 08, and given the jail term on Christmas Day last year.
In February, Liu's appeal against his conviction was turned down by a Beijing high court, which upheld the harsh sentence.
''Liu has consistently maintained that the sentence violates both China's own constitution and fundamental human rights,'' the Nobel Committee's statement said.
Charter 08 was inspired by Charter 77 published by intellectuals in 1977 in what was then Czechoslovakia, which called for an end to one-party rule by the Communist Party there and the establishment of a human rights-based system of law and democracy.
The Chinese charter was originally signed by more than 300 Chinese intellectuals and activists, many of whom have reported of being harassed by Chinese security personnel for their endorsement of Charter 08.
The Nobel Committee said that with China's economy having greatly developed and hundreds of millions of people lifted out of poverty, ''scope for political participation has also broadened.''
''China's new status must entail increased responsibility,'' it said.
The committee accused Beijing not only violating several international agreements to which it is a signatory, but also provisions in its own constitution that concern political rights.
Citing articles that provide for freedom of speech, of the press, of assembly, of association and of demonstration, it said, ''In practice, these freedoms have proved to be distinctly curtailed for China's citizens.''
Several friends of Liu who said they are signatories of Charter 08 expressed pleasant surprise at Friday's announcement.
Xia Yeliang, a professor at Peking University's School of Economics who said he was a good friend of Liu and a signatory of the charter, told reporters outside Liu's residence that the prize is a positive step for China's political reform.
''This prize is a psychological support and encouragement to him (Liu), to know that so many people are wishing him well, not just Chinese citizens but also those in the international community who care about him and about promoting freedom in China and political reform.''
Another Charter 08 signatory, Li Hai, said the announcement manifests the international community's ''good wish'' for China's political progress.
''The motivation from the award is not just to a select group of activists but to every Chinese citizen, including the Chinese leadership,'' Li, also a friend of Liu, told reporters.
In a reaction from exile in northern India, Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, who won the same prize in 1989, congratulated Liu and said awarding him the prize ''is the international community's recognition of the increasing voices among the Chinese people in pushing China towards political, legal and constitutional reforms.''
''I believe in the years ahead, future generations of Chinese will be able to enjoy the fruits of the efforts that the current Chinese citizens are making towards responsible governance,'' he said.
The Dalai Lama called on Chinese authorities to release Liu and other prisoners of conscience who have been imprisoned for exercising their freedom of expression.
(Distributed by Kyodo News on Oct. 8, 2010)
Liu, the first Chinese to win the prestigious prize, is a key author of Charter 08, a democratic manifesto that called for sweeping political change in China. He is currently serving an 11-year prison term for ''inciting subversion of state power.''
''For over two decades, Liu Xiaobo has been a strong spokesman for the application of fundamental human rights also in China,'' Nobel Committee chairman Thorbjoern Jagland said in a statement.
''Through the severe punishment meted out to him, Liu has become the foremost symbol of this wide-ranging struggle for human rights in China,'' he said.
Liu has been detained repeatedly by Chinese authorities over his two decades of activism, including involvement in the 1989 Tiananmen pro-democracy protests.
The 54-year-old democracy activist, writer and former lecturer was a hot favorite among bookmakers to win the 2010 prize, whose contenders included Afghan women's rights activist Sima Samar and Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai.
U.S. President Barack Obama took the prize in 2009 and previous winners have included Myanmar's detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and South African statesman Nelson Mandela.
In Beijing, the awarding of this year's peace prize to an imprisoned dissident did not go down well with the Chinese government.
''Liu is a criminal who has been sentenced by Chinese judicial authorities for violating Chinese laws. His actions have gone against the purpose of the Nobel Peace Prize,'' Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said in a statement.
Awarding him the prize will damage China-Norway relations, he added.
But Jagland, a former Norwegian prime minister who currently heads the Council of Europe, said the Nobel Committee ''has long believed that there is a close connection between human rights and peace.''
''Such rights are a prerequisite for the 'fraternity between nations' of which Alfred Nobel wrote in his will,'' he said.
Later Friday, Norway's foreign ministry said China had summoned Norway's ambassador in Beijing to protest the award, according to Reuters news agency.
''They wanted to officially share their opinion, their disagreement and their protest,'' a ministry spokeswoman in Oslo was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, Liu's wife Xia, after hearing that her husband won the prize, called it ''unbelievable.''
''This is not only an award for him but also for everyone in China who has been fighting for democracy, freedom and peace and for the prisoners of conscience,'' she told Hong Kong's Cable TV in a live telephone interview from her Beijing home.
She said she plans to visit him in prison Saturday to tell him the news, adding that she hopes the award can help shorten his prison term as more people will press China for his release.
Dozens of police officers were stationed outside Liu's home and she was prevented from leaving it to speak with reporters.
Liu was taken away from his home by authorities in December 2008, just before the release of Charter 08, and given the jail term on Christmas Day last year.
In February, Liu's appeal against his conviction was turned down by a Beijing high court, which upheld the harsh sentence.
''Liu has consistently maintained that the sentence violates both China's own constitution and fundamental human rights,'' the Nobel Committee's statement said.
Charter 08 was inspired by Charter 77 published by intellectuals in 1977 in what was then Czechoslovakia, which called for an end to one-party rule by the Communist Party there and the establishment of a human rights-based system of law and democracy.
The Chinese charter was originally signed by more than 300 Chinese intellectuals and activists, many of whom have reported of being harassed by Chinese security personnel for their endorsement of Charter 08.
The Nobel Committee said that with China's economy having greatly developed and hundreds of millions of people lifted out of poverty, ''scope for political participation has also broadened.''
''China's new status must entail increased responsibility,'' it said.
The committee accused Beijing not only violating several international agreements to which it is a signatory, but also provisions in its own constitution that concern political rights.
Citing articles that provide for freedom of speech, of the press, of assembly, of association and of demonstration, it said, ''In practice, these freedoms have proved to be distinctly curtailed for China's citizens.''
Several friends of Liu who said they are signatories of Charter 08 expressed pleasant surprise at Friday's announcement.
Xia Yeliang, a professor at Peking University's School of Economics who said he was a good friend of Liu and a signatory of the charter, told reporters outside Liu's residence that the prize is a positive step for China's political reform.
''This prize is a psychological support and encouragement to him (Liu), to know that so many people are wishing him well, not just Chinese citizens but also those in the international community who care about him and about promoting freedom in China and political reform.''
Another Charter 08 signatory, Li Hai, said the announcement manifests the international community's ''good wish'' for China's political progress.
''The motivation from the award is not just to a select group of activists but to every Chinese citizen, including the Chinese leadership,'' Li, also a friend of Liu, told reporters.
In a reaction from exile in northern India, Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, who won the same prize in 1989, congratulated Liu and said awarding him the prize ''is the international community's recognition of the increasing voices among the Chinese people in pushing China towards political, legal and constitutional reforms.''
''I believe in the years ahead, future generations of Chinese will be able to enjoy the fruits of the efforts that the current Chinese citizens are making towards responsible governance,'' he said.
The Dalai Lama called on Chinese authorities to release Liu and other prisoners of conscience who have been imprisoned for exercising their freedom of expression.
(Distributed by Kyodo News on Oct. 8, 2010)
