We thank all of you for your support over the last several years as we have advocated for the release of Chen Guangcheng and we thank God that he was finally released from prison, and reunited with his family in early September.
However, he remains under house arrest in terrible conditions. According to the China Aid Association, State Security has prevented anyone in his family from leaving their house even to get groceries. It is harvest time in China and they refuse to let anyone go out into the fields except Chen’s mother, who is in her late seventies. Most seriously, Chen is in very poor health and should be in the hospital, but the Chinese government was refusing to grant him basic medical care as of September 23rd.
Since September 23rd when a family friend was able to contact them, there has been a complete information blackout on Chen Guangcheng’s situation. We have no reason to believe that he has been moved from his house but with his worsening health and inability to communicate with the outside world we simply do not know.
Late in October, a dozen members of the US Congress sent a letter to the US Ambassador to China asking him to send a Embassy official to check on the conditions under which Chen Guangchen is being held. It is reassuring to know that official attention is being given to the case of this valiant defender of human rights. We hope to have more news soon and will keep you informed.
The latest press releases can be found on the China Aid Association’s website here
The Congressional letter can be found here