A draft letter from Harvard faculty to Premier Wen JiaobaoHarvard Faculty December 10, 2003
Premier Wen Jiabao Dear Premier Wen: We are writing as faculty of Harvard University to welcome you to our campus. Indeed, it is both an honor and a pleasure to have you here for a beneficial exchange of information and views. In this context, we feel it important to bring to your attention the case of Dr. Yang Jianli, one of our graduates and a legal permanent resident of the United States. Dr. Yang has been detained in China since April 26, 2002. On behalf of Dr. Yang’s wife, who herself is an employee of Harvard Medical School, and their two young children Aaron and Anita, we would greatly appreciate your assistance in facilitating Dr. Yang’s release. Dr. Yang is an accomplished scholar who lives in Brookline, Massachusetts. He received his Ph.D. in Political Economy and Government from Harvard University and a Ph.D. in Mathematics from the University of California at Berkeley. He has undertaken important work in both fields. In addition, he is involved in ongoing research projects with Harvard faculty, which focused on formal models of voting systems and efficient mechanisms for income transfer. As you know, Harvard University has enjoyed deep and long-standing ties with the People’s Republic of China. Many of your citizens are graduates of Harvard, and a great number of Chinese students are studying here at the moment. In addition, Harvard has numerous ongoing programs and exchanges with Chinese universities and your government. It is in this spirit of cooperation that we ask your government, as a humanitarian gesture, to do everything in its power to facilitate Dr. Yang’s immediate release, so he can return home to his family and work in the United States. Such an action will also help ensure Dr. Yang’s detention does not interfere with our strong partnership, which we hope will continue to flourish in the years to come. Thank you for considering our request and taking the time to address this important matter. Respectfully, The undersigned are representative of the widespread support and concern at Harvard University. Unless otherwise indicated, they are Kennedy School of Government faculty members. -------------------------- |