Dream Villager presents: Jailed Chinese Dissident Wins Nobel Peace Prize

International

Jailed Chinese Dissident Wins Nobel Peace Prize

Nov 23, 2010 - Other / N/A

The 2010 Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to Liu Xiaobo, a writer and passionate advocate of democracy, who has been repeatedly jailed by the Chinese government for his activism.

The award was given in recognition of “his long and non-violent struggle for fundamental human rights in China.” Liu is currently serving an 11-year sentence on charges of subversion.One of three people who have received the prize while incarcerated by their governments, Liu is described by the Chinese Foreign Ministry as “a criminal who has been sentenced by Chinese judicial departments for

violating Chinese law,” and that “giving the

peace prize to such a person runs completely contrary to the aims of the prize.” Supporters of Liu say he was instrumental in brokering a peaceful withdrawal of students from Tiananmen Square in 1989 as armed soldiers looked on.

He has spent the years since advocating for political change, and raising the ire of the ruling Chinese Communist Party for his actions. His most recent arrest, in 2008, occurred just before a manifesto he helped write was released on the internet. Named Charter ’08, it called for improvements in human rights in China, an independent legal system and the elimination of one-party rule.

Liu Xiaobo’s wife says her husband “has persevered in telling the truth about China and because of this, for the fourth time, he has lost his personal freedom.” In addition to worldwide recognition for their work in promoting peace. winners of the Nobel Peace Prize receive a unique version of the Nobel medal, a personal diploma and the equivalent of approximately $1.4 million.