China’s jailed Nobel Peace laureate given medical parole
BEIJING — Imprisoned Chinese Nobel Peace Prize laureate and dissident Liu Xiaobo has been transferred to a hospital after being diagnosed with late-stage liver cancer, authorities and his friends say.
The deteriorating health of China’s best-known political prisoner was immediately met with dismay and anger by the country’s beleaguered community of rights activists and lawyers, who called it a blow to the democracy movement.
Liu, 61, is receiving treatment at a hospital in the northeastern city of Shenyang, lawyer Mo Shaoping told The Associated Press. Liu was diagnosed on May 23, and prison authorities in a statement said Liu was granted a medical parole and placed in the care of cancer experts, although it was not clear exactly when he was transferred to the hospital.
His cancer appears to be severe. “No surgery, no radiation, and no chemotherapy will do,” a sobbing Liu Xia, his wife, said in a video phone call recorded on a cellphone. The clip has been shared in circles of supporters and verified by the couple’s friends, who said she was at the hospital.