Activist Jailed in China Seeks Medical Aid

December 15, 2004

Activist Jailed in China Seeks Medical Aid By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Published: December 14, 2004 Filed at 5:47 p.m. ET WASHINGTON (AP) -- A Boston-based democracy activist jailed in China is seeking a medical parole because of a stroke he suffered earlier this year, his wife says. Yang Jianli, who has served more than half of a five-year prison term on charges of espionage and illegal entry, was hospitalized for the stroke earlier in the summer and continues to feel numbness on the left side of his body, his wife, Christina Fu, said Tuesday. Advertisement Fu learned details of her husband's condition after his brother and sister-in-law were allowed to visit him at the Beijing prison Tuesday. ``It's a big relief that his condition is not life-threatening right now,'' said Fu, who still lives in the Boston area with their two children. ``But I would really rather see him coming home.'' In a letter to Secretary of State Colin Powell sent Tuesday, Fu's lawyer, Jared Genser, asked the U.S. government to urge the People's Republic of China to release Yang on medical parole. Since he has served half of his sentence, Yang is also eligible for non-medical parole, Genser said. ``Not only would this result be the best outcome for his health and his family, but it would also remove an ongoing and unnecessary irritant in the U.S.-China relations,'' Genser wrote. Chinese officials have rejected appeals by American lawmakers and State Department officials for Yang's release. Fu said her husband is in good spirits, and has been allowed to receive food, mail and reading materials.