Contact: Katherine Cason, 267-210-8278, Katherine@ChinaAid.org; Washington DC contact: Jenny McCloy, 202-213-0506, Jenny@ChinaAid.org; www.ChinaAid.org, www.MonitorChina.org
WASHINGTON, April 23 /Christian Newswire/ -- Today, April 23, Senator Bryon Dorgan, Chairman of the Congressional - Executive Commission on China (CECC), will raise the case of Gao Zhisheng, a Christian human rights attorney who is currently missing and believed to be experiencing severe torture at the hands of Chinese authorities.
Photo: Gao Zhisheng with his wife Geng He and their children
Senator Dorgan's speech is scheduled to be delivered from the floor of the Senate Chamber at 11 a.m.. Gao Zhisheng's wife, Geng He will be present at the Senate Gallery. ChinaAid president Bob Fu together with Geng He will present to Senator Dorgan a petition with more than 50,000 signatures of concerned citizens requiring the Chinese government to give an account of Gao's whereabouts and ask for his immediate release. ChinaAid commends Senator Dorgan's bold stand on behalf of Gao Zhisheng and the cause of freedom in China.
Gao Zhisheng, who was nominated for the 2008 Nobel Peace Prize, was forcibly taken from his hometown in Shaanxi province early in the morning on February 4 by more than a dozen police officers. Currently, his whereabouts are unknown. Gao has been kidnapped and tortured for his pursuit of human rights in China. Gao sent an open letter to the U.S. Congress dated September 12, 2007, and, afterward, was kidnapped and severely tortured by Chinese authorities for more than 50 days. Though authorities threatened Gao with death if he revealed the torture he experienced, Gao chose to release publically the details of his experience. It is believed his current disappearance is a direct result of his refusal to be silent.
Sign the petition for Gao Zhisheng's immediate release at www.FreeGao.com.
Read Gao Zhisheng's open letter to the U.S. Congress in 2007.
Read Gao Zhisheng's open letter to the international community regarding his kidnapping and torture by Chinese authorities in 2007.
ChinaAid grants permission to reproduce photos and/or information for non-fundraising purposes, with the provision that www.ChinaAid.org is credited. Please contact: Katherine@ChinaAid.org with questions or requests for further information.
