WASHINGTON IN BRIEF: 36 on Hill Seek Activist's ReleaseWashingto Post Members of Congress have urged President Bush to ask Chinese President Hu Jintao to release a Boston area activist imprisoned in China on spying charges. In a letter to Bush sent yesterday, 36 U.S. House members said Yang Jianli's imprisonment will continue if Bush does not intercede. Jianli has been jailed in China since April 2002. Bush is meeting with Jintao next week. The lawmakers said that although Yang entered China illegally, the punishment far outweighed the offense. Yang, a Chinese citizen with permanent U.S. residency, was tried Aug. 4 on charges he spied for Taiwan. He pleaded not guilty during the three-hour trial. The verdict has been delayed because the prosecutor asked for additional time. Compiled from reports by staff writer Eric Pianin and the Associated Press -------------------------- |