Congressmen Ask Bush To Press Jiang To Release Dissident October 17, 2002 WASHINGTON (AP)--Members of Congress on Thursday called on President George W. Bush to use next week's meeting with Chinese leader Jiang Zemin to press for the release of a Massachusetts resident detained in China. Yang Jianli, a Chinese citizen with permanent U.S. residency, heads the Foundation for China in the 21st Century, a Boston-based group that advocates democracy and the rule of law in China. He was detained April 26, during his first trip to his homeland in 13 years, while trying to board a flight in the southwestern city of Kunming using a fake identity card. China's Foreign Ministry said May 10 that Yang had been formally arrested, making it likely that he will face trial. The government hasn't said what charges he faces. Reps. Barney Frank and Michael Capuano, D-Mass., and Rep. Christopher Cox, R-Calif., said Yang's detention is in violation of international and Chinese law, and he should be released as a demonstration of China's interest in improving its human rights record. Yang was in China to meet with labor activists who have been protesting wage and pension problems, according to the Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinic of Greater Boston Legal Services Inc., an organization that has advocated for Yang's release. If China does not release Yang, or at least allow his family to see him and provide the written notification of his arrest necessary to retain a defense lawyer, the next Congress will oppose further progress on U.S.-Chinese relations, Frank said. "Many of us will use this as an argument against going forward until they make some changes," said Frank, one of 27 House Democrats and Republicans who wrote to Jiang last month about Yang's case. Michael Anton, a spokesman for the White House National Security Council, said he did not know if Bush would bring up Yang's case when he meets with Jiang next week. "Human rights issues are always on the table," Anton said. Jiang will visit the U.S. Oct. 22-25. He is expected to visit Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas, where the two will probably discuss matters ranging from Taiwan to terrorism to possible action against Iraq. The visit will be the third meeting between the leaders within the last 12 months, following a pair of visits to China by Bush. Updated October 17, 2002 7:21 p.m. EDT -------------------------- |
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