dpnd fnd captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2008 certification or belongs my family. my employees told me that the public security officers visited him three times and he asked he wad asked to monitor my activities. i had no opportunity to be promoted. and my the end. my husbandfected the life of ou 9-year-old son.

he is continually blamed by some arrested, he held some leadership position in his class. and in his school. but he has been stripped of this, previously active and outgoing, he has become more an confidence. my husband is innocent. he loves our country. he is an ecology professor who has commitment for or country and devoted christian whose conscious lead him to advocate for rights and freedom that are universal. for this, he was given a ten years prison term. this is egregious political persecution. his mother is elderly and sick. and his son and i miss him greatly. i cannot imagine my son not being able to see his father for

another seven years. i'm very grateful to china for helping me in the united states to live inexe. i appeal to the u.s. congress and the u.s. government to help reunite my family and to urge china's leaders to release my husband immediately. and without condition. as well as the many other political prisoners who are personalized for speakinggod, t. >> thank you so much for joining us, for your very courageous appeal on behalf of your husband. and i hope that the white house, i hope the house and the senate and i hope that xi jinping is listening to this appeal from two wives for your individual husban husbands, but also all the other left-behind family members, on

behalf of the tens of thousands of political prisoners and religious prisoners in china. so thank you for your outstanding statement. >> sir, also i want congress can keep my husband articles, the 347 articles and two letters to the hu jintao and the premier wen jiabao. >> we will receive those articles. >> on the congressional record. >> thank you. >> good afternoon mr. chairman and mr. co-chairman and thank you for the opportunity to speak with all of you today. i want to begin by thanking the congressional executive commission on china and all the members and staff today for the fabulous work that you're doing on behalf of the united states. it is real service to our country to have such scrutiny of the chinese government's human rights record.

as international pro bono legal counsel to imprisoned chinese lawyer, i want to provide you with a brief overview of his case and my explanation as to why his continued detention violates both chinese and international law. i will also rx on why although mr. gau is only one of chinese prisoners of conscious, his case is a bellweather that deserves especially close attention. gau was a prominent chinese lawyer who ran afoul of the government after he took on politically sensitive cases, particularly those of religious minority groups. in 2005 the government shut down his law firm. in august of 2006 the authorities arrested mr. gau and accus accused him of inciting subversion. a charge that is frequently used to silence government krilens. the government prevented the family's chosen lawyers from meeting with him and used threats against his wife and

children to extract a confession. the trial lasted less than a day. on december 26th, 2006, the beijing first intermediate people's court handed down a suspended three-year sentence, subject to a five-year probationary period. despite the formal suspension of his sentence, mr. gau was not free. over the next five years, the government repeatedly disappeared and tortured him. in september 2007, authorities disappeared him for 50 days, after he publicly criticized china's human rights record. then in february of 2009, the government again abducted mr. gau, shortly after his family sought asylum in the united states. denied access to a lawyer, mr. gau was held in secret for more than a year. although he mysteriously disappeared in march 2010, mr. gau disappeared again a few weeks later. he has not been seen or heard from since. on november 2010 a union group

on arbitrary detention, an imparl body, issued opinion number 262010, finding his ongoing detention to be in violation of international law. after 20 months without credible information regarding mr. gao's whereabouts and days before the probationary period was to end. chinese state media announced that mr. gao would now serve his sentence. he was taken to shia county prison in a remote autonomous region. prison officials turned mr. gao's family away after they traveled 20 hours to see him, claiming that mr. gao didn't want to see his family and that he could not receive visitors during a three-month quote educational period. no independent party has been able to confirm mr. gao is alive or actually at that prison. the government's imprisonment of

mr. gao, if in fact he is at the shia county prison is illegal for three reasons. first, mr. gao has already spent more than three years in government custody since his arrest in 2006 on subversion charges. he has already served his full sentence. second, the charges against mr. gao for inciting subversion arise out of his written and spoken criticism of the chinese government. imprisoning mr. gao for exercising his fundamental right to freedom of expression is a flagrant violation of china's own constitution. and finally, the prosecution of mr. gao failed to meet international standards for due process. during the trial, the government relied on a forced confession and denied mr. gao the right to counsel of his own choosing. thus, in revoking mr. gao's probation, we have subsequently seen that the government has acted without any legal process whatsoever yet again. we filed a new petition to the u.n. working group on arbitrary detention, urging it to find this new period of detention is

also in violation of international law, although he is only one of many chinese prisoners of conscience, mr. gao's case is an important bellweather for three reasons. first, mr. gao is not a traditional dissident. he is a lawyer. a vanguard of the rights defending movement, mr. gao attempted to promote the rights of his clients from working within the system. his case shows the government's willingness to persecute those that promote the rule of law from within, but he is not alone. the government continues to hold prominent lawyer chen under strict house arrest with his wife and daughter. chen, also a self-trained lawyer rose to prominence after he organized a class-action lawsuit, exposing abuses under china's one-child policy. the government is moving forward with the prosecution of a well-known tenants' rights lawyer. second the continued detention of mr. gao is instructive because it is part of a larger crackdown which the chinese government continues to stifle freedom of expression. as ambassador lock noted last

month, repression in china has worsened since the uprisings in the middle east and north africa. in december and january, three activists all received long prison sentences of nine or ten years and authorities put a fourth activist on trial. each was charged with subversion or its incitement. this larger crackdown will only be exacerbated by the government's incredulous moves to potentially legalize disappearances like mr. gao's under chinese law. such a cynical move would render the whole idea of the rule of law meaningless. finally mr. gao's case is striking because how brazen the government has become and the government's willingness to lie about the circumstances of his detention. after the government disappeared mr. gao in 2009, a government agent told the family that mr. gao had lost his way and went missing. later the foreign ministry spokesman indicated that mr. gao was quote where he should be, an ominous reference.

but when pressed later smiled and said he didn't know where mr. gao was, and couldn't be expected know the whereabouts of all of china's 1.3 billion people. then the government released a photograph of mr. gao, purporting to show him alive and well. but in it, mr. gao was wearing a distinctive bracelet he had given his daughter, grace, before she and his wife and son fled to the united states. an unknown woman tried to steal this bracelet from grace on a new york city subway. now authorities are claiming that mr. gao, a loving husband and father, would rather not see his family. the chinese government's treatment of mr. gao and his family is nothing short of shocking. and its contradictory claims show a total disregard for the international community. if the government's lies are not publicly and directly confronted, it sends a message to beijing that respect for the rule of law and basic human rights are no longer a priority. i thank you for the opportunity

to share my thoughts and would welcome any questions. thank you. >> thank you for your incisive testimony. i would now like to ask pastor fu if he would proceed. >> thank you, mr. chairman. the mr. co-chair, and the honorable members of the commission, and thank you for the commission's professional staff and for your excellent work in documenting and pursuing the human rights issues in china. our mission is to promote the establishment of a loving and just civil society in china, that i bids by the rule of law. in pursuit of this mission and out of a profound respect for gao and to support his work, china aid has spared no effort in launching a worldwide campaign aiming at winning gao's release. over the past five years, we

have expanded huge manpower and financial resources in mobilizing effort in this regard. as a very small ngo, we are limited in what we can do. but we know our efforts are some value in the same way that those faint voices against slavery before the american civil war, eventually led to the full awakening of the same, of the forces of justice. three years ago, we set up the free gao xi zung website, to launch worldwide attention on his behalf and so far we have collected over 150,000 real-name signatures from 196 countries. and i printed, we printed out the signatures today, and we

want to give to cecc, as a record. these names, these voices, these people spoke up. and from sudan to afghanistan, from south africa to norway. from china to america. 150,000 people of conscience coming from various faith back grounds, political systems and family back grounds, of different occupations and of all ages have signed this petition. for more than three years, we have been looking night and day for gao xi zhung. we have never stopped asking where is he? how is he doing? i myself have traveled all over the united states and to europe, many times, calling for gao's release. unfortunately, the situation is getting worse. we don't even have a way of confirming that gao is still

alive today. our fears grow with each passing day. so we ernestly hope the free western world will abandon the acquired diplomacy and hope it will speak up and urge china that is a signatory of the declaration of human rights and the international covenant on civil and political rights to abide by both its own domestic law, as well as the international laws. to abolish the use of torture and to immediately release gao and stop persecuting his family. because of him. and china should be held accountable for gao's case. on the occasion of the visit to the united states by vice president xi jinping, the next leader of the china and the chinese communist party, we're filled once more with hope. hoping that the meetings between america's top leaders and xi

jinping can facilitate gao's release. we do not forget without the countless american who is under the leadership of president abraham lincoln vowed to free the black slaves and with the price paid by martin luther king jr. and his supporters, the first african-american president in u.s. history would not be sitting in the white house today. this glorious history reminds us that those who have been freed must not forget the virtue of those who fought for freedom. furthermore, we have the obligation to carry on this tradition and to show compassionate support for those around the world who are still being oppressed. this is the spirit of martin luther king jr. and gao and it is a noble reason that should compel us to continue to fight for their cause. and mr. chairman, i was very much moved this morning by the actions of my friend, michael

horowitz, on behalf of the china six-prisoner faith and all other chinese prisoners of conscience. i think mr. horowitz is here today. i was especially moved by his effort to cause the obama administration to deal with the human rights issues with the primetime attention that such leaders as president reagan and the late tom landis give it. michael was arrested in front of the white house this morning. for engaging in a quiet and respectful demonstration. as i saw the police place handcuffs on him and drive him away in a squad car, i realized how great america's heart can be. i also realized the great things that america's friends of freedom can do for oppressed people in china andelsewhere. before his arrest, michael prepared a statement which i hope can be entered into the

hearing record. as you know, michae important role in working with you, and with congressman wolf and others on such legislation as the international religious freedom act and the north act. his statement reflects a great understanding of what determined america can do through peaceful means. to make china and the world a better and a safer place. let me conclude with the words of martin luther king jr. himself. quote and if america is to be a great nation, this must become true. thank you very much. >> pastor fu thank you very much and your request to include the statement by michael horowitz will be made part of the question. like you, i do greatly admire his work as well on behalf of the human rights and today's action is just another discernible manifestation of

that deep concern for fundamental human rights in china and everywhere else. so thank you for your testimony. just to begin the questioning, let me just -- ask ms. hu, gung hu, if i could, you point out in the testimony that gao once said that you cannot be a human rights lawyer in china without becoming a rights case yourself. >> i with say this to ms. li as well. when we express dissatisfaction with a policy or our government, we make it an editorial that's damning, we as politicians may come under some kind of press scrutiny that we might not welcome. but nothing, nothing, that even comes close to the consequences, the bad consequences that men and women who promote human rights face in china.

i think americans need to become much more aware of the systematic use, there's no show trials, there's no due process of law in the people's republic of china. it's a dictator ship. yet both of your husbands spoke out boldly, knowing that there might be severe and long-lasting consequences to themselves and to their families. what motivates that kind of courage? because you have it as well. you bear the brunt and the scars of the dictatorship as well. >> if you could answer, why do they do it? where does the courage come from to speak out when the iron fist of the secret police is waiting

with a baton and the implements of torture. i would note parenthetically in the 1990s, i chaired a hearing in nye human rights committee, we vited six survivors and they brought in the implements of torture that are routinely used against political and religious prisoners. your husband spoke out. how and why did he do it? >>. [ speaking foreign language ]

>> my husband, gao zhisheng, grew up in a poor countryside. and when he was eight years old, his father died. he hope he can bring change to china, and he also works, study very hard and obtained his law degree. he hoped to use the law to help more people in china. [ speaking foreign language ] >> he was very happy that he can use his knowledge in the legal system to help many chinese people. actual lit first case he took was for the poor people and he did it pro bono. [ speaking foreign language ]

>> he successfully handled a case and actually helped the victims got about 800,000 in rewards. and so after the successful case, many people in china come up to him to seek legal support. [ speaking foreign language ] so actually this one case, one people travel more than 1,000 miles to shinzhen in order

to seek lawyer gao zhisheng's help. and the lawyer gao zhisheng meets with them immediately. and helping him settle down and then they talk about the case, discuss about the case immediately. and each time the lawyer gao zhisheng meet these kind of people, he always very remind him that his mother actually helping people while herself was in the very difficult conditions. [ speaking foreign language ]

>> so lawyer gao zhisheng has done so many good deeds in china by actually still face such a severe persecution. and even my family suffer a lot from it. and my daughter actually have it take the police bus to go to school. the police sit behind her on the bus. and they almost 24 hours surveillance for her. and so when we arrive in the united states, the first day my daughter didn't choose to go to the school. he choose to go to the hospital. because she suffered tremendously. mentally. >>. [ speaking foreign language ] >> mile children and i support lawyer gao zhisheng wholeheartedly, because what he

did is right and we believe in the righteous power in the world. >> thank you. >> ms. li? >> i think for mice husband, firstly, we are a christian family. and the key words in bible love, i think it's not just a feeling, but it's a commitment. for my husband, he thinks, he need to help the poor people to have a voice. so he did that. and after the first persecution for him, and he start to think why we can treat him like this. it's because only one party.

he started thinking over this matter. >> without the division of power, without checks and balances -- >> they can do everything they want. so they start to oppose democracy in china. and every time when i see him in prison, he always told me, i'm not wrong. actually, if he promise he will not continue to write get out, maybe the government will release him faster. but he always say no. i'm not wrong. yeah. >> thank you. out of love, is based on a faith-based conviction, which is

an enormous motivator and i thank you for sharing it. it is the why of it, even electric have lech walesa, it was his faith. we know there are people of facht in china who paying a very significant price. let me ask a couple of questions before yielding to my colleague. and into mr. wolf. in your testimony ms. geng, you make the statement that it's no small irony that while you're speaking here on capitol hill, chinese vice president xi jinping is just up pennsylvania avenue meeting with president obama at the white house. you did point out with your disappointment that you believe that your husband's plight has been downplayed by the white house. i would say for the record, i want this very clear, i've been in congress 32 years, both mr.

wolf and i have been, and we have never saw human rights issues as partisan issues. if george bush was dropping the ball, as we thought he was doing, especially in the run-up to the olympics with regards to human rights in china, we spoke out very, very loudly. we even went there right before the olympics to raise individual cases. set up the meeting with the white house. with six difficult dents before bush went there. including harry wu to insure that the human rights focus never left. i have been concerned. this administration has been indifferent to a large extent, relying on lower-level dialogues and conversations and i would respectfully submit that quiet diplomacy is just another name for indifference. this needs to be raised and i said at my opening, hu jintao

came here, there wasn't one public expression by president obama about human rights. there he was, meeting with the captor and the jailor of laoja everyone jabo who had gotten the nobel peace prize. i think ms. li, you made a very profound insight. where you said without u.s. leadership on human rights, few in beijing will be listening. the u.n. has not raised its voice in any powerful way. so the u.s. needs to be the ones to do it. and you said only the united states can make this case to china. either of the two gentlemen or the two wives might want to speak to that. how would you rate how we're doing? how the white house is doing? it seems to me this is on a back