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Chinese blogger goes missing
Hao Wu (surname Wu) may be the first blogger in China to get nabbed by its secret police. He has a lot video material they could use. Too bad his sources trusted him. He has American papers - they don't. Chinese authorities are holding a documentary film-maker who was researching the countrys underground churches, while a social activist best known for his work with rural communities infected with HIV/AIDS has been missing for more than a month and is presumed detained. Wu Hao, a documentary filmmaker who lived in the United States from 1992-2004, was detained by the Beijing division of Chinas State Security Bureau on the afternoon of Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2006, according to a statement on the Harvard-backed Global Voices Online Weblog, for which Wu was a part-time editor. On that afternoon, Wu had met in Beijing with a congregation of a Christian church not recognized by the Chinese government, as part of the filming of his next documentary, Global Voices said. The Public Security Bureau has confirmed that [Wu] Hao was in fact detained, Rebecca MacKinnon, Global Voices founder and research fellow at Harvard Law Schools Berkman Center for Internet and Society told RFAs Cantonese service. Filming with human rights lawyer But they have no information about any charges, or how long until his release, she said. An official on duty at the Beijing Public Security bureau promised to call back, but no such call was received. I cant call out on this phone. If you leave your details, I can call you back with the information, the official said. Hao had also been working with Gao Zhisheng, a lawyer specializing in human rights cases. He came and did a couple of shoots with me, on the subject of my daily life and my work, before the lunar new year, Gao told RFAs Mandarin service. The next day [Feb. 22], he had arranged to come again, but that was the day that he went missing. I called some friends in America to let them know, Gao told RFA reporter Ding Xiao. Police removed editing equipment and several videotapes from Wus apartment on Feb. 24, and Wu later called home but was unable to speak freely. One of Haos friends has been interrogated twice since his detention, Global Voices said in its online statement. AIDS activist believed detained The reason for Haos detention is unknown. One of the possibilities is that the authorities who detained Hao want to use him and his video footage to prosecute members of Chinas underground Churches, it said. We are very concerned about his mental and physical well-being. Wu was Northeast Asia Editor for Global Voices, but his personal blog, Beijing or Bust, was not that of a rights activist and contained little criticism of the Chinese government. Posted by: Zhang Fei 2006-03-24 |
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