so so far what we know at least chen guangcheng's eldest brother, chen guangcheng's sister-in-law, chenangcheng's cousin and the son of this cousin are in the hands of the authorities. okay. that's so far what we know. now i want quickly to talk about the state, the state, what i find this young man was saying. eleven times i personally counted, eleven times he mentioned the word "law." in turn he was appealing to the law to defend him. another moment he was desperate, he was sobbing, he was shaking that he did not for a moment believe the law would defend him. that was the thing -- the conversation is long. if anybody is interested, they can go to my web site which is www.seeing red in china.com, to read the complete transcription. but this one point i want to emphasis. he said, quote: i love my motherland, but look what she gives me, end quote. and she also said at the very end of our conversation she said, at the bottom of the society all is so tragic. now, i also want to quickly to give you my impression of the -- because after i talked to him for several days i can't shake off this

chen. the foreign coronets club of china reported in early may that officials threatened to revoke the visas of foreign journalists who went through the hospital without permission. a note that mr. journalists have demonstrated amazing courage and laudable perseverance in publicizing mr. chen's plight. it is largely due to their promotion of mr. chen's case that it has reached this stage of a possible travel to the united states. i would earnestly ask them not to forget mr. chen and his family and extended family and others who are risking their security and their loves on his behalf. the story unfortunately is far from over. before i turn to our panelists of distinguished witnesses to discuss the current events, i would like comments by my fellow colleagues who some are en route here part of the record without objection. i'd like to ask our witnesses if they would come to the witness table and i would introduce them to the eskimo. pastor bob fu was a leader in tinman square and later becam

chen's brother, and mr. chen's nephew, chen kegui tried to defend himself with a kitchen knife.e is now in a detention center. i'm extremely concerned for his welfare, as well as other family members. the day after the emergency hearing on may 4, the chinese ministry of foreign affairs posted on their website the statement that, and i quote, a chinese citizen, mr. chen may apply like other chinese citizens, according to the laws and mama procedures of the relevant departments. the u.s. department of state also issued a press release announcement, the chinese government stated today that mr. chen guangcheng has the same right to travel abroad as any other citizen of china. mr. chen has been offered a fellowship at a university where he will be accompanied by his wife and children. the chinese government has indicated that they will extend his application for appropriate travel documents. the united states government expects that the tennis government will expeditiously process is application for the documents. now, 11 days later, ee sste hosl room with his wife and two arrest. al

chen.he foreign correspondents club of china reported in early may that officials threatened to revoke the visas of foreign journalists who entered the hospital without permission. many journalists have demonstrated amazing courage and lot of role perseverance, and publicizing mr. chen's flight. it is largely due to their promotion of mr. chen's case, that has reached this stage to the united states. i would earnestly ask them not to forget mr. chen and his family and extend his family and others like are risking their security on his nap. before i turn to our panelists as distinguished witnesses witnesses to discuss current events, i would make comments by my fellow colleagues who are here today. i would like to now ask her witnesses they would come to the witness table and i will introduce them to the subcommittee. beginning first with pastor bob -- bob fu, who is the leader of the falun gong movement in tenements beware. after their work in 1982, chinese monitors report religious freedom

chen, you are on. >> mr. chen, welcome back. >> translator: i just want to talk to what happened to my other family members. around midnight a group of government led by the local township leader and raided my elder brother's home at midnight. >> translator: around midnight a group of thugs of the local authorities broke into my elder brother's home and just started beating them violently. >> translator: and my elder brother was taken away by this thugs and without any reasoning and then they came back and started beating up my nephew and for -- they use sticks and violently beating up him and then for three hours he's bleeding on his head and his face was not stopped and so this is so violent that my nephew to my knowledge had to defend himself. pinterest >> translator: this attack against my nephew for so-called intentional homicide is totally trumped up charge. and for himself at his own home to be accused of committing this crime of intentional homicide against the intruders is totally absurd and irration

to visit chen.some of them showed up in the hospital and not even allowed to come close so the hospital rooms that chen and his family members are saying became essentially another village under -- in a different form in the capital city of china. i would call upon the u.s. government especially, actually chen specifically requests, talk about his request to have a phone conversation with you and last night specifically requested again, i want to talk with congressman chris smith. and unfortunately this morning a moment ago when we tried -- we don't know what happened. he promised me he will keep that up, possible for a conversation with you today. secretary clinton, this is the moment to deliver what you have promised, what you have repeatedly said in the past two years. you want to see chen and his family with freedom. you are visiting a dialogue with your counterparts in china, this is the moment to deliver. i think chen specifically made that appealed to secretary clinton to help negotiate, be e

but today, chen asked secretary clinton to take him out on her plane, and later, in a phone call, chen was patched through to a congressional hearing in washington. chen told the committee he wants to come to the u.s. to rest. they'll make a movie out of this one day, but in the meantime, we have reports from beijing and washington, first, david martin. >> reporter: the almost-not-to-be-believed saga of chen guangcheng, is in the understated words of one u.s. diplomat, one of the most challenging human rights cases we've had in some time. critic escaped from house arrest, chen was hiding out with fellow dissidents in bake, when the u.s. earthquake headed by ambassador gary locke, mounted an operation to bring him in from the cold. >> when we got the word he was in beijing wanting to talk to us in the wee hours of the morning we went out and contacted him, and then we engineered almost a maneuver out of "mission impossible" to bring him in to the embassy. >> reporter: the maneuver involved transferring chen from a van driven by the dissident to the u.s. government car while evading chin

chen -- so maltreat your own people? chen is a hero. we will not rest until he and his family are free. the hearing is adjourned. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2012] >> coming up, republican presidential candidate mitt romney campaigns in virginia with michele bachmann and bob mcdonnell. then a discussion about the growing number of political independents in the united states and the growing number of political parties. tomorrow morning, barney frank and bill kristol debate issues being talked about this year. congressman frank announced he will be retiring at the end of the term. he was first elected in 1980. join us live 9:30 a.m. eastern on c-span2. coming up friday, david walker will discuss the latest unemployment figures and take your calls on the economy. then, jane harman addresses u.s. foreign policy and the intelligence community. she will also talk about chinese activist chen guangcheng and the afghan security deal signed this week. finally, america

and china on chen's treatment. on the context of that agreement, chen agreed even though there were reports that there were some issues involved, we have difficulty confirming it. he went to the hospital for treatment. suddenly we are hearing is that the same agreement that the united states and china agreed upon has been violated. and now, he is asking that he wanted asylum for he and his family to the u.s. the opportunity that is there for his case -- secretary -- it is rare for the political prisoners. secretary clinton is there. u.s. officials are there. you have seen u.s. officials cannot solve this issue. the u.s. is having a direct relevance because the agreement that was signed, we have to ask a question. what can they do to get improvements and human rights issues in china? that draws to a bigger question about human rights in china and u.s. engagement in places. amnesty international is concerned. even though there are some meaningful improvements that were taken by different administrations, current dial

now chen changed his mind.terview and through a translator, chen pleads with president obama to help him leave china. >> translator: i would like to say to him please do everything you can to get our whole family out. i'm very disappointed with the u.s. government. >> chen says u.s. officials pressured him to leave the safety of the u.s. embassy but the u.s. ambassador denies that saying chen left of his own volition. secretary christianilinton is c choosing her words in china. >> the united states raises the importance of human rights and fundamental freedoms because we believe that all governments do have to answer to seasons aspirations for dignity and the rule of law. >> at this moment we want china's help dealing with north korea, iran and syria and more cooperation on fair trade rules and currency exchange. the chen situation makes things a whole lot tougher. if only because america prides itself on promoting human rights throughout the world even going to with a aar to further that g. the talk back quest

chen knew this. chinese authorities jailed him in 2006 after he file add class action lawsuit on women who had undergone force aid borgss and steri abortions and sterilizations because of the policy. i would like to share some of the stories and images that will show what you is happening in china right now, even as i speak. i should warn you that these stories are disturbing. they will give you a personal glimpse at the genocide or systematic elimination of girls taking place in china, where men outnumber women by 40. . they show the brutality of forced abortions. they show why chinese women face a climate so oppressive that a woman takes her life every three seconds in china. the first story illustrates how severely the policy can affect a single family. this is -- the picture you can see on the power point on the screen, who lives in a province. she the second daughter of two parents who violated the one-child policy, because they desperately wa ll lwant add boy. after her birth. in her family, th

chen guangcheng couldn't thank american diplomats enough. he even phoned secretary clinton to personally thank her. for their part, the americans seemed delighted to have ended a standoff that began six days ago when chen escaped from house arrest and took refuge in the u.s. embassy. then, as chen was take on the a chinese hospital to be reunited with his family the wheels started to come off a deal which was supposed to have allowed him to remain in china free of persecution. justice chris johnson-- who, until two weeks ago, was the c.i.a.'s top china analyst-- predicted it would. >> in terms of trying to negotiate with the chinese a means to guarantee his safety within china, there's too much chance the chinese regime would renege and the administration would look terrible. >> reporter: from his hospital room, chen called western reporters and fellow dissidents saying he'd been coerced into leaving the safety of the american embassy. chen was also quoted as saying he now fears for his safety and that of his family and wants to come to the

chen. and while those talks continue, president obama today tried to avoid saying anything that could risk their hopes to diffuse this crisis. >> obviously i'm aware of the press reports on the situation in china but i'm not going to make a statement on the issue. what i would like to emphasize is that every time we meet with china the issue of human rights comes up. >> reporter: it was clear mr. obama was trying to avoid rattling an already tense situation in part because chen's case is threatening to be the biggest human rights issue between the countries since the tiananmen square crackdown in 1989. today we learned kirk campbell, a high level state department official arrived sunday to try and quickly resolve the crisis and to avoid a diplomatic embarrassment before secretary of state hillary clinton and treasury secretary tim geithner are set to arrive for a previously scheduled conference on security and economic issues. >> the u.s./china relationship is important. >> reporter: today

chen told the a.p., u.s. officials disappeared after he reached the exphpt now he fears for his safety and wants to leave china. >> ( translated ): i feel that if they could ensure our safety, i'd say, but the way it looks now, i have already lost hope of that. >> back in washington, the state department spokesman had this response: >> at no time did he ever request political asylum. that's another thing we're seeing in the press. at every opportunity, according, again, to those officials who were with him during his stay at the u.s. embassy, he expressed a desire to stay in china. he wanted to reunify with his family. >> even as chen was heading to the hospital, secretary of state hillary clinton arrived in beijing for a long-scheduled talks. she released a statement before chen spoke out in which she welcomedly the agreement. >> foreign policy magazine editor susan glasser traveled with the clinton delegation to china. she says u.s. officials believe they tried to help chen. >> they thought they did the bes

chen for an extended period. similar to what they did for one in tiananmen square, so i believe the u.s. has ongoing negotiations with beijing over important strategic matters. other politicians will be attacking president obama for caving to chinese pressure. >> just to tell you the bbc activists have seen chen guangcheng's wife in the hospital and she is confirming she and the children are well and chen guangcheng himself is having a medical check-up. we will bring you news as it comes in. >> six are killed outside the cairo ministry. they were protesting. the political tension has come over a year after the defeat of hosni mubarak. what's happened in the last few hours? >> the demonstrators have been outside the ministry for days. they have been attacked before. but not on this scale. these unidentified thugs went in with stones and rocks and fire bombs but also firing with shotguns as well. five deaths are acknowledged and up to 150 people that were injured are now being treated and the deep suspicion is that

but according to a chinese activist who's been supporting chen, after moving to the hospital, chen said that he felt stressed and became desperate because so many uncomfortable things happened, including threats to his wife. so, it's believed that he had no choice but to change his mind about staying in china. >> i see. so, then how do you think this case will affect u.s./china relations? >> well, top officials from the u.s. and china held their annual talks in beijing last week, but all the attention was on chen's case. the two countries made their position clear concerning human rights issues in china. >> we will continue engaging with the chinese government at the highest levels in putting these concerns at the heart of our diplomacy. >> china repeatedly expressed their frustration, saying that the u.s. was interfering in their domestic affairs and that this was unacceptable. but it seems like china's true intention is to prevent the issue from getting any bigger. one expert says the exchange of strong words is just a part of political rhetoric. >> neither side wanted this case to st

and china on chen's treatment. on the context of that agreement, chen agreed even though there were reports that there were some issues involved, we have difficulty confirming it. he went to the hospital for treatment. suddenly we are hearing is that the same agreement that the united states and china agreed upon has been violated. now, he is asking that he wanted asylum for he and his family to the u.s. the opportunity that is there for his case -- secretary clinton is there. u.s. officials are there. you have seen u.s. officials cannot solve this issue. the agreement that was signed, we have to ask a question. what can they do to get improvements and human rights issues in china? that draws to a bigger question about human rights in china and u.s. engagement in places. even though there are some meaningful improvements that were taken by different administrations, current dialogue that is taking place is not taking human rights as a serious and equal partner to the dialogue. even the basic things like human right

>> chen, mr. chen, you are on -- welcome back. [ speaking in foreign language ] [ speaking in foreign language ] [ speaking in foreign language ] >> translator: i just want to talk about what had happened to my other family members after i escaped from my own home. and on april 26th, around midnight, a group of chinese government, the local government hard thugs led by the township leader, and raided my elder brother's home at midnight. [ speaking in foreign language ] >> translator: around midnight there was a group of thugs by the chinese, the local authorities, just broke into my elder brother's home, and started beating them violently. [ speaking in foreign language ] [ speaking in foreign language ] >> translator: and my elder brother was taken away by these thugs and without any reasoning, and then they came back and started beating up my nephew, and for -- used stakes and violently had beaten up him and then for three hours, he's bleeding on his head and his face, which not stopped. so this

chen was also quoted as saying chen was also quoted as saying he now fears for his safety and that of his family and wants to come to the u.s. american officials insist that throughout his six days at the embassy, chen insisted in remaining in china, and he left after they negotiated the best deal possible with the chinese government. what has been described as the biggest test in u.s.-chinese relations in 20 years is not over yet. among other things, the chinese are demanding the u.s. apologize for meddling in their internal affairs. >> pelley: thank you, david. we're joined now by long-time asia correspondent holly williams of our british partner, sky news. she's covering the story and joins us from beijing. holly, what's the state of play right now? >> well, we understand that chen guangcheng is still in hospital here in beijing. he's being treated for some kind of stomach complaint. late in the day here in china, one of his friends spoke to him over the phone and then started tweeting. and she said that mr. chen had told her that he had been forced to leave the u.s. embassy becaus

chen is the chinese activist who arrived at the u.s. embassy in beijing last week seeking american help. he had come from the eastern coastal province of shandong where he had been under house arrest since ending a four-year jail term in 2010. chen is 40 years old, and is a pioneering self-taught lawyer who advocated on behalf of women subjected to forced abortions and forced sterilizations. policies undertaken by the chinese government to keep its enormous population in check. reportedly in march, chen escaped his captors by scaling a wall, meeting a car, traveling over 300 miles with a foot injury, to beijing, making the story more remarkable is that chen is totally blind. the american embassy protected him for six days. then on wednesday of this week, chen emerged with u.s. ambassador gary locke and taken to the hospital for treatment of injuries curing his escape. american officials said they only brought chen out of the embassy after severing receiving a promise from beijing he would not be harmed. chen agreed to stay in china as l

we're talking about chen guangcheng. how was that reported by the chinese press compared to the western press? >> his story has been centered in the mainstream media in china for some time. -- censored in the mainstream media in china for some time. he has been under house arrest. the mainstream media says the u.s. is interfering in chinese affairs and should back off. >> in terms of how they're perceived and in terms of how they're opening up their relationship with the u.s. and we have these talks with hillary clinton, how should they be approaching mr. chen's situation? >> they value his ability to engage in society. i think they need to also stressed that media freedom and allowing journalists [inaudible] allowing foreign journalists' access to him and others in his situation is vital for the protest. >> are you not concerned that by having or by trying to gain access to him, we're not in danger in his position? >> i think that is a valid concern. i think that he and other dissidents recognize the risk involved in sp

chen. >> paul, is ann marie coming back? >> i think we're close to concluding this hearing, and i want to thank our very distinguished witnesses and ask them if perhaps they might have some final comments they would like to make. i do, and i say this with all due respect to the president of the united states. i am concerned when the united states government, when president obama was asked about chen guangcheng specifically and human rights. he said no comment on chen and that human rights, quote, it comes up. my hope is that we are in the process of a game-changing reappraisal of our depriorization of human rights in china and perhaps elsewhere in the world but absolutely in china where wittingly or unwittingly we have enabled this terrible crime of forced abortion and forced sterilization to occur while we've looked ascance and acted as if it wasn't happening. chen guangcheng reminds us in a very powerful way and the suffering that he's endured that he stands in solidarity with the women o

critics accuse the obama administration of failing to protect chen. but spokesman jay carney said the u.s. was following chen's >> at no point during his time in the embassy did mr. chen ever request political asylum in the u.s., and now he's expressed a change of view we're continuing to have conversations with him about how to move forward. >> reporter: so far u.s. officials have not been allowed to see chen since he agreed to stay in china. theresa garcia, cbs news. >> despite the diplomatic firestorm, secretary clinton says u.s./chinese relations are stronger than they've ever been. secretary clinton and timothy geithner meant with hu jintao today. clinton said the u.s. and china have a very open and honest relationship where we can discuss our differences. >>> the obama administration says it may be time to admit defeat in its current handling of the situation in syria. the white house says it's clear the u.n.-brokered cease-fire is not holding and blames the syrian government. the u.n. estimates the 13-month uprising against syrian president ass

the chen story.lizza, mitt romney has said this is a day of shame for the obama administration, talking about chen guangcheng. he is not giving them the benefit of the doubt. >> absolutely not. interesting engaging on foreign policy after a few days of waiting and seeing. this is clirly a calculated move by the romney campaign believing they can expose or show that the obama campaign has been lax or faulty in the way they've handled it. not the last as you point out we've heard of it. >> very, very tough indeed. a delicate time. thanks. that does it for us. for this edition of andrea mitchell reports. "news nation" is next. i think it's final seconds, ohh, shoots a three, game over. so two seconds ago... hey mr. and mrs. harris, where's kevin? say hi kevin. mom, put me down. put...the phone...down. hey guys. did you hear... the choys had their baby? so 29 seconds ago. well we should get them a gift. [ choys ] thanks for the gift! [ amy and rob ] you're welcome! you're welcome! [ male announcer ] get

firestorm over chen, u.s. secretary hillary clinton says ties between u.s. and china are stronger than ever. clinton said the u.s. and china have a very open and honest relationship where we can discuss our differences. >>> the obama administration says it may be time to admit defeat in its current handling of the situation in syria. the white house says it's clear the u.n.-brokered cease-fire is not holding and blames the syrian government. the u.n. represents the uprising has claimed over 13,000 lives. >>> the self-proclaimed mastermind of the 9/11 attacks scheduled to be arraigned tomorrow. khalid shaikh mohammed will be arraigned at guantanamo bay where eventually he and four others will be tried by a military tribunal. a trial date will also be set tomorrow. relatives of 9/11 victims will be able to watch the court proceedings on tv and military bases. >>> we've learned more about al qaeda and osama bin laden's final days from just declassified letters found in the pakistan compound where he was killed. b

according to the chinese activists supporting chen, after moving to the hospital, chen said he felt stressed and became desperate because so many uncomfortable things happened, including first to his wife. it's believed he had no choice but to change his mind about staying in china. >> i see. how do you think this case will affect u.s.-china relations? >> top officials from the u.s. and china aheld hybrid talks lat week in beijing but all the attention was on chen's case. the two countries made the position clear concerning human rights issues in china. >> we will continue engaging with the chinese government at the highest levels and putting these concerns at the heart of our diplomacy. >> china repeatedly expressed their frustration, saying that the u.s. was interfering in their domestic affairs and this was unacceptable. it seems like china's true intention is to prevent the issue from getting any bigger. one expert says the exchange of strong words is just a part of rhetoric. >> neither side wanted this case to stand indefinitely. it doesn't work for any side. for president obama, it sim

for hiding chen. chen's work he can posing forced abortions in rural china landed him in jail for four year. after that he had been kept under house arrest with wife, daughter and mother, and was often harassed and beaten by local authorities. >>> cbs news learned a congressional committee plans to initiate contempt charges against attorney general eric holder today in the "fast and furious" investigation. republicans on the house oversight committee will accuse holder of giving false denial answers that misdirected investigators and withholding subpoenaed documents. in "operation fast and furious" the government allowed weapons to fall into the hands of mexican drug traffickers that agents lost track of thousands of guns. >>> now to politics and the gop presidential race. newt gingrich officially ended his campaign and threw his support to mitt romney. and today the former massachusetts governor is expected to get the endorsement of another former rival. tara mergener is in washington with more. good

the united states is renegotiating with china over the fate of the chinese human rights activist chen quangcheng, who was transferred to a beijing hospital from the u.s. embassy there wednesday. the u.s. government announced chen would be moved to a safe location within the country reflecting his choice. the move was based on an agreement with china. on thursday, chen revealed his concerns to nhk in a telephone interview. >> he also said chinese authoritiy ies have set up seve new surveillance cameras at his home where his mother still lives. chen says the reassurances he got before leaving the embassy have not been kept and his rights are being violated. u.s. state department spokesperson victoria nuland said chen had a change of mind after half a day in the hospital. she added the u.s. government is rethinking its agreement with china and negotiating the possibility of chen and his family abroad. chinese government is trying to avoid a lengthy dispute that could accelerate demands for democracy. >>> the united states and china ended their first day of strategic and economic dialogue

he tried to visit chen in the hospital thursday evening. then there's this woman also known by her english name pearl pup see her there. she's the woman we told you about that helped chen escape his house arrest in the dead of night. she was detained herself. we are told by human rights groups she was released yesterday. take a look at this man. an unnamed supporter of chen's who actually would not allow cnn to identify him today pup soo pictures from behind him and his computer, not his face. why? he says he fears for his safety. coving this story, he and his crew, you see these pictures here. this is obviously -- you can see an altercation. followed by plained clothes police who hassled them at every stop as they tried to approach chen's village. it's impossible to note how many stories like these are out there. reliable statistics on political prisoners in china are extremely hard to come by. the congressional executive commission on china keep as prisoner database and recorded 6,886 cases of political or religious imprisonment in china.

after tense negotiations, chinese officials agreed to let chin chen live free of persecution, but chen had second thoughts. after another round of talks, he was allowed to pursue his longtime goal-- studying law at new york university. analysts say the chen case demonstrates that even on es, beijinssues, beijing and kashington can work together. >> over the long run, our relationship with china and how eell it's managed will be one of the most consequential things we do in the world. and i think the way we handled this case is at least at a modest level, good news. >> reporter: officials at new york university said chen will study as fellow at his law although school. he and his family will live in a housing facility for faculty and grad students. elaine quijano, cbs news, new york. >> reporter: the white house houset welcomes today's move which came as president obama was hosting the g-8 summit of lrld leaders at camp david. d.om there, it's on to the nato summit tomorrow in chicago. orrow inhite house correspondent bill plante is already there ghnight. bill, good evening to you. >> r

after tense negotiations, chinese officials agreed to let chen live free of persecution, but chen had second thoughts. after another round of talks, he was allowed to pursue his longtime goal-- studying law at new york university. analysts say the chen case demonstrates that even on delicate issues, beijing and washington can work together. >> over the long run, our relationship with china and how well it's managed will be one of the most consequential things we do in the world. and i think the way we handled this case is at least at a modest level, good news. >> reporter: tonight, mr. chep will head here to new york city, where he and his family are expected to meet with reporters. meanwhile, officials at new york university say he will study there as a fellow at its law school. >> dubois: elaine quijano tonight, thank you. while the white house said it welcomes today's move came as president obama was hosting the g-8 summit of world leaders at camp david. from there it's on to the nato summit tomorrow in chicago. senior white house correspondent bill client is already there tonight.

citizens do. >> chen escaped from house arrest and sought help at the u.s. embassy in beijing. he was transferred to a hospital on wednesday following negotiations between the chinese and u.s. governments. the u.s. said chen had agreed to move to a safe place of his own choice in china with his family, but the blind activist later said he wanted to go to the united states with his family, forcing the two governments to resume negotiations over his fate. chen earlier asked for a meeting with u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton. testifying by telephone before a u.s. congressional commission, he said he no longer feels safe in china and wants to leave for the united states. >> the activist said he wants to meet clinton, who is visiting beijing, to seek further support and to thank her face to face. >> your case is the test, the test of the chinese commitment to protect you, which they've given. we're very dubious about those assurances. >> the commission chairman said the u.s. congress will take up the issue adding that the american commitment to the human

chen's state? we caught up with the u.s. officials who brokered the deal for chen to leave the embassy. they're under pressure. they have delivered chen to chinese hands and may not be able to undo that deed. >> a real diplomatic mess. the fallout from this incident is one of the reasons why "time magazine's" cover story this week reads, "the people's republic of scandal." a short time ago the magazine's editor joined us from new york. this whole episode seems increasingly messy. how does it reflect on america's relations with china? >> well, i think it's shaping up to be a diplomatic debacle of catastrophic proportions. yes, the united states administration and the diplomatic core may have preserved the relationship with china, but at what price? i think for people who are concerned about human rights, people are concerned about the united states reputation as a beacon to preserve human rights this is looking like a pretty amateurish move. it's quite troubling, actually. >> what your cover story suggests is this has implica

embassy took chen into custody. he said americans are interfering in chinese domestic affairs and demanded they apologize. beijing and washington are both refusing to comment on specifics about the case. nhk world in beijing tells us about chen guangcheng. >> reporter: civil rights activist chen guangcheng lost his sight as a child. he started campaigning before being disabled. he also spoke out against forced abortions under the government. chen was detained by police in 2006 and spent the next four years in prison. his ordeal continued after his release in 2010. the dissident was put under house arrest with his family. sources close to chen say the dramatic escape happened on april 22nd. he's said to have broken out climbing over the wall around his house. the sources say he managed to slip past the guards and arrived in beijing four days later. after the escape, chen posted the video message on the internet. it is a direct appeal to chinese premier jiabao. he demands an investigation into his case. he says his ho