icpc letter to british council

独立独立独立独立中文笔会中文笔会中文笔会中文笔会 Independent Chinese PEN Centre (ICPC)

President: Tienchi Martin-Liao, Vice-presidents: Shiying Zhao & Jiang Bo

Secretary-general: Shiying Zhao, Deputy Secretary-general: Yu Zhang

Södra Jordbrovägen 19, NB, SE-137 65 Jordbro, Sweden

Tel: +46-8-50022792 Fax: +46-8-50224191 Email: [email protected]

Press release embargoed until April 12, 2012

A Letter to the British Council on the London Book Fair April 10, 2012

Dear Madams/Sirs

It has come to our attention that for this month’s London Book Fair that you have invited the Administration

of Press and Publication of the People’s Republic of China (GAPP-PRC), which has long banned the works

written by a large number of dissident writers, among them Dr. Liu Xiaobo, laureate of the 2010 Nobel Peace

Prize. The GAPP-PRC has carefully selected 181 publishers and 31 official writers to present its own

achievement in government-approved and censored literatures.

In order to give English authors and readers a broader understanding of the situation of Chinese literature and

Chinese writers, we would like to name only a few writers whose works have been completely banned and

who had to serve in prison for their writings in China. Like Liu Xiaobo, they have lost their freedom to write

as well as their personal freedom, which is why we believe they need all more the support from the British

Council. We hope that through your support to introduce, cite and spread their literary works - fiction, verse

and prose, as well as their writings which have been labelled and condemned as crimes - to their British

colleagues and the British public. Among them are many PEN members and honorary PEN members,

including the literary critic and poet Liu Xiaobo, presently serving his 11-year imprisonment, and his wife

Liu Xia, a poet who has been held under house arrest for a year and a half; Zhu Yufu, a writer recently

sentenced to seven years in prison mainly for a poem he wrote after his release from a 9-year imprisonment;

Yang Tongyan (aka Yang Tianshui), a novelist and poet serving his 12-year sentence in jail after a previous

10-year imprisonment; Shi Tao, a journalist and poet serving his 10-year imprisonment; Nurmuhemmet

Yasin, an Uighur novelist and poet serving his 10-year imprisonment; Tan Zuoren, an environmentalist and

writer serving his 5-year imprisonment; Zhang Jianhong (aka Li Hong), a poet and novelist who died soon

after his release on medical parole after suffering complete paralysis due to his stay in prison; Dr. David Tsui

(aka Xu Zerong), an Oxford scholar who was released last year after serving 11 years in prison; Yu Jie, an

author who has been forced to take asylum in the United States this year after he was silenced by brutal

beatings and tortures for his book for a period of over one year; Liao Yiwu, a poet and author who has been

forced into exile in Germany last year; Zhou Qing, a writer of Munich City whose works have been banned

in China; Jiao Guobiao, a Beijing-based author whose works have been banned in China; Ma Jian, a

London-based novelist, and Bei Ling, a Germany-based poet and publisher, both of whom were denied entry

to China last year, and many others. Particularly, we wish British and international writers and visitors of the

London Book Fair to hear the voice of Ms. Woeser, a Tibetan writer restricted at her home in Beijing, to

help the general public understand the tragic events of continuous and large-scale self-immolations in Tibet,

while dozens of Tibetan writers and scholars who have raised their voice about the political situation in Tibet,

have been imprisoned there, including Domal Kyab, Tashi Rabten, Jangtse Donkho, Buddha, Kalsang

Jinpa, Dokru Tsultrim, Kunchok Tsephel Gopey Tsang and Kunga Tseyang. In PEN’s case lists alone

there are over 40 writers imprisoned in China for their writings.






The British Council has emphasized that the Chinese writers are being invited for their writings in and about

China, in order to broaden the understanding of Chinese literature in Britain and to promote cultural

exchange between the two countries. We cannot but ask: to understand Chinese literature, should the British

people rely on the recommendations by the Chinese government alone? Is there no need to learn about the

authors who will never be able to get a recommendation from the government and whose works have been

banned in China? Should Václav Havel have been ignored because he was imprisoned while his works had

been banned by the former Czechoslovakian authorities? Should Joseph Brodsky’s creations not have been

considered a part of Russian literature when he was jailed in the former Soviet Union or after he was forced

into exile? Should Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie no longer be able to promote cultural exchange between the

United Kingdom and India? We believe that such a view, which the British Council is now running the risk

of emphasizing, is unfair to the many writers who have been banned, imprisoned in, or exiled from China.

London is the birthplace of PEN International. It is in the British tradition of humanism to be concerned

about all the writers who are politically persecuted and to promote their release from prison. It is on this

basis that we sincerely request the British Council to draw attention to the situation of the writers whose

works are banned in China.

We have also noted that you are using the term “Chinese literature". As the official, government approved

writers generally represent the government, the official literature allowed by GAPP-PRC is only a very

limited part of Chinese literature, mainly representing so-called "socialist literature with Chinese

characteristics". It cannot but reflect far less than a full view of Chinese literature. Chinese literature must

include independent literature, beyond official censorship and banning, heretical literature, underground

literature, prison literature and exile literature. Therefore, please do not support the Chinese government’s

GAPP-PRC’s misleading presentation for British authors and readers.

A society where writers have lost their human rights and professional freedom under the conditions restricted

by their government is not a free society. If the British Council wishes to promote an authentic cultural

exchange in a free and civilized way, please do not disregard the independent writers whose works are

dedicated to shaping a Chinese civil society, especially those who has lost freedom and whose works have

been banned by GAPP-PRC to present at the Book Fair.

We are looking forward to hearing from you.

Kind regards,

Signed by

Independent Chinese PEN Centre

German PEN Center

Center PEN Swiss Romand

San Miguel PEN Center

Portuguese PEN Center

PEN The Netherlands






Lithuanian PEN Centre

Sydney PEN Center

PEN Centre for German-speaking Writers Abroad

PEN Canada

Centre Québécois du PEN

Uyghur PEN Center

PEN Center of Tibetan Writers Abroad

PEN Esperanto, Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC)

PEN Flanders Center, Board member Geertrui Daem, head of WiPC Xavier Roelens, members Prof.

Joris Gerits, Frank De Vos and Hilde Keteleer

Dr. Bashabi Fraser, Edinburgh Napier University, Member of Scottish PEN Center

Ulrich Schreiber, Director of International Literature Festival, Berlin

Prof. Gereon Sievernich, Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin

Beijing Spring

Qi's Cultural Foundation

Tendency Inc. (Publisher, Taiwan)

(more to join)

For more information, contact

Independent Chinese PEN Center (ICPC)

1) Tienchi Martin-Liao, President,

Tel: +49 176 5472 3721, +49-176 5472 3721(m)

email: [email protected]

2) Patrick Poon, Executive Secretary

Tel: +852-94173765

email: [email protected]

3) Yu Zhang, Coordinator of Press & Translation Committee

Tel: +46-8-50022792

email: [email protected], [email protected]

Websites: http://www.chinesepen.org/english and http://www.liuxiaobo.eu/






Appendix: The Writers in Need for Your Concern and Support

1. LIU Xiaobo & LIU Xia

Name LIU Xiaobo

Sex Male

Birth date 1955-12-28

Birth place Changchun City, Jilin Province

Resident place Beijing City

Education BA in literature, Jilin University (1982) and PhD in literature (1988) at Beijing

Normal University

Profession Freelance writer and human right activist (former President and current Honorary

President of ICPC, Honorary member of German, American, Portuguese, Czech and

Sydney PEN Centers)

Date of arrest 2008-12-08 (residential surveillance)，2009-06-23 (arrested)

Organ of arrest Public Security Bureau of Beijing City

Cause of arrest Initiating and signing the Charter 08, a declaration calling for political reform and

human rights, and publishing dissident articles overseas

Charge Inciting of subversion of State power

Date of sentence 2009-12-23 (hearing), 2009-12-25 (verdict), 2010-02-11 (appeal)

Organ of sentence Beijing First Intermediate People’s Court, Beijing High People’s Court (appeal)

Sentence 11 years imprisonment and 2 years deprivation of political rights

Defender Lawyers MO Shaoping (barred from this case), SHANG Baojun and DING Xikui

Place of jail No. 1 Detention Center of Beijing City; since 2020-05-26, Jinzhou Prison, Nanshan

Road 86, Taihe District, 121013 Jinzhou City, Liaonin Province

Situation in jail OK

Date of release 2020-06-21

Since 22 October 2010, two weeks after the Nobel announcement was made, Liu Xiaobo’s wife Liu Xia, a

poet and photographer, has been held incommunicado under strict house arrest at her home in Beijing and is

denied any contact with the outside world.






2. ZHU Yufu

Name ZHU Yufu

Sex Male


Birth place Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province

Resident place Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province

Education at Department of Chinese Literature at Hangzhou College, 1971

Profession Staff of Housing Management office, Shangcheng District, Hangzhou City, and editor

of Opposition Party (Member of ICPC, Honorary Member of England PEN)

Date of arrest 1999-06-19(detained) / 1999-09-15 (arrested); 2007-04-18(detained) / 2007-05-18

(arrested); 2011-03-05 (detained, 3rd)，2011-04-10（arrested)

Organ of arrest Public Security Bureau of Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province (1st)

Shangcheng Branch of Public Security Bureau of Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province

(2nd )

Public Security Bureau of Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province (3rd)

Cause of arrest Founding the magazine of Opposition Party for Chinese Democratic Party, distributing

its articles on internet, and communicating with overseas (1st);

Publishing dissident articles and having troubles with police（2nd) ;

Publishing dissident articles (3rd)

Charge Subversion of the state power (1st); obstructing the execution of official duties (2

nd);

inciting subversion of the state power (3rd)

Date of sentence 1999-11-09, 1999-12-10 (appeal); 2007-07-10 (2nd) , 2008-04-09 (retrial); 2012-02-10

(3rd)

Organ of sentence Hangzhou Intermediate People's Court, Zhejiang High People's Court (appeal);

Shangcheng People's Court, Hangzhou Intermediate People's Court(retrial), Zhejiang Province(2nd);

Hangzhou Intermediate People's Court, Zhejiang Province (3rd)

Sentence 7 Years imprisonment and 3 Years deprivation of political rights (1st)

2 Years imprisonment and two years, four months and 26 days deprivation of political

rights(2nd); 7 Years imprisonment and 3 Years deprivation of political rights (3

rd)

Defender Lawyer MIAO Weichuan (1st); Lawyer MO Shaoping (2

nd); Lawyer LI Dunyong (3

rd)

Place of jail Zhejiang No. 6 Prison, Haining City (1st); Zhejiang No. 2 Prison, Hangzhou, Zhejiang

Province (2nd); Detention Center of Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province (3

rd)


Date of release 2006-09-14(1st); 2009-04-18 (2

nd); 2018-03-04 (3

rd)






3. YANG Tongyan

Name YANG Tongyan

Pen name YANG Tianshui

Sex Male


Birth place Siyang County, Jiangsu Province

Resident place Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province

Education B. A. in History at Beijing Normal University, 1982

Profession Freelance writer, former teacher and office worker (ICPC member and Honorary member of PEN Canada, Italian PEN and PEN

America)

Date of arrest 2004-12-25 (detained), 2005-12-23 (detained for 2nd time)

Organ of arrest Public Security Bureau of Zhenjiang City, Jiangsu Province (2nd)

Cause of arrest Internet writing and publishing dissident articles, and participating in some unlawful

activities against the state power

Charge Inciting subversion of the state power (1st); subversion of the state power (2nd)

Date of sentence 2006-05-16

Organ of sentence Zhenjiang Intermediate People's Court, Jiangsu Province

Sentence 12 Years imprisonment and 4 Years deprivation of political rights

Defender Lawyer Tomas GUO/ LI Jianqiang (2nd)

Place of jail Nanjing Prison, 210012 Nanjing, Jiangsu Province (2nd)

Situation in jail Hospitalized due to seriously sufferings from tuberculous intestinal inflammation and

peritonitis in 2010, and still from diabetes and nephritis, beside arthritis and high

blood pressure

Date of release 2005-01-24 (on guarantor for pending trial), 2017-12-22 (2nd time)






4. SHI Tao

Name SHI Tao

Pen name Nice Ears

Sex Male


Birth place Yanchi City, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region

Resident place Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province

Education B. A. in Political Education at East China Normal University, 1991

Profession Poet, freelance writer and journalist (ICPC member, Honorary Member of Sydney, German, Canada, New Zealand, Swiss

Italian, Swiss German, American, English, San Miguel, Scottish and USA PEN

centers)

Date of arrest 2004-11-24 (detained) / 2004-12-14 (arrested)

Organ of arrest National Security Bureau of Hunan Province

Cause of arrest Internet posting an article that was alleged later to have revealed the state secrets

Charge Illegally providing state secrets overseas

Date of sentence 2005-04-30 / 2005-06-02 (appeal)

Organ of sentence Shangsha Intermediate People's Court, High People's Court (appeal), Hunan Province

Sentence 10 Years imprisonment and 2 Years deprivation of political rights

Defender Lawyer Tomas GUO (disbarred), TONG Wenzhong, Mo Shaoping and DING Xikui(appeal)

Place of jail Yinchuan Prison, Yinchuan City, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region

Situation in jail Better, except for stomach trouble uncured.







5. Nurmuhemmet YASIN

Name Nurmuhemmet YASIN

Pen name Nurmemet YASIN

Sex Male


Birth place Bachu County (Maralbeshi), Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region

Resident place Bachu County (Maralbeshi), Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region

Education Graduate from a secondary school

Profession Freelance writer and poet (Honorary member of ICPC)

Date of arrest 2004-11-29 (detained)

Organ of arrest National Security Bureau of Kashgar Prefectur, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region

Cause of arrest Published a short story "The Wild Pigeon" in the Kashgar Literature Journal, N0.5,

2004

Charge Inciting separatism


Organ of sentence People’s Court of Bachu Country; People’s Intermediate Court of Kashgar Prefecture

(appeal), Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region

Sentence 10 Years imprisonment and ? Years deprivation of political rights

Defender No lawyer

Place of jail Urumqi No.1 Prison, Urumqi City, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region

Situation in jail not allowed for family visit







6. TAN Zuoren

Name TAN Zuoren

Sex Male


Birth place Chengdu City, Sichuan Province

Resident place Chengdu City, Sichuan Province

Education Graduate from Huaxi Medical University

Profession Freelance writer, environmentalist, former editor of Literati magazine and former

anaesthetist (Honorary Member of ICPC)

Date of arrest 2009-03-28 (detained), 2009-04-30 (arrested)

Organ of arrest Public Security Bureau of Chengdu City, Sichuan Province

Cause of arrest Trying to compile “5.12 Student Archive”, a list of children killed in schools that

collapsed during a devastating earthquake on May 12, 2008, and in 2007 publishing at

overseas Chinese website a memo (a series of 3 parts) based on his dairy on June

Fourth Massacre in Beijing, 1989.

Charge Inciting subversion of State power

Date of sentence 2009-08-12 (hearing), 2010-02-09 (verdict); 2010-06-09 (appeal)

Organ of sentence Intermediate People’s Court of Chengdu City, High People’s Court of Sichuan

Province

Sentence 5 year imprisonment and 3 years deprivation of political rights

Defender Lawyers PU Zhiqiang and XIA Lin

Place of jail Ya'an Prison, Mingshan County, 625100 Ya'an City, Sichuan Province








7. ZHANG Jianhong

Name ZHANG Jianhong

Pen name Li Hong

Sex Male


Birth place Yinxian County, Zhejiang Province

Resident place Ningbo City, Zhejiang Province

Education University graduate

Profession Freelance writer, playwright and poet (ICPC member and

Honorary Member of Melbourne PEN and PEN America )

Date of arrest 2006-09-06 (detained), 2006-10-12 (arrested)

Organ of arrest Public Security Bureau of Ningbo City, Zhejiang Province

Cause of arrest Internet writing and publishing dissent articles

Charge Inciting subversion of state power

Date of sentence 2007-03-19, 2007-05-15 (appeal)

Organ of sentence Intermediate People's Court of Ningbo City, High People's Court of Zhejiang Province

(appeal)

Sentence 6 years imprisonment and 1 year deprivation of political rights

Defender Lawyer LI Jianqiang

Place of jail Qiaosi Prison; PrisonGeneral Hospital, Hangzhou City,Zhejiang Province (since

2007-10-20)

Situation in jail Heath getting worse since being detained and applied for medical parole upon doctor’s

advice but turned down; suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis when released

Date of release 2010-06-05 (medical parole)

Zhang had been released on medical parole on 5 June 2010 after having served 3 years and 9 months

imprisonment, but under very critical conditions of his health in need for a life support to survive. He passed

away on 31 December 2010 at age 52.






8. Dolma Kyab

Name Dolma Kyab

Pen name Lobsang Kelsang Gyatso

Sex Male

Birth date 1976

Birth place Qilian County, Qinhai Province

Resident place Lhasa, Tibet

Education Qinhai Normal College

Profession Writer and teacher

Date of arrest 2005-03-09

Organ of arrest Public Security Bureau of Lhasa City, Tibet Autonomous Region

Cause of arrest Writing an unpublished book entitled Sao dong de Ximalayshan (“Himalaya on Stir”)

Charge Endangering state security


Organ of sentence Intermediate People's Court of Lhasa City, Tibet Autonomous Region

Sentence 10 years and 6 months imprisonment

Defender Unknow

Place of jail Xining Prison, Nanjing Road 14, Xining City, Qinhai Province

Situation in jail Unknow







9. Tashi Rabten

Name Tashi Rabten

Pen name Te’urang

Sex Male

Birth date 1986

Birth place Dzoege County, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province

Resident place Dzoege County, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province

Education Northwest Minorities University, Lanzhou City, Gansu Province

Profession Student, Tibetan writer, chief editor of Tibetan monthly Shar Dhung-Ri (Honorary

Member of ICPC)


Organ of arrest unknown

Cause of arrest editing the banned Shar Dungri (Eastern Snow Mountain) and authoring of a new

collection of political articles entitled Written in Blood.

Charge Inciting split of the country


Organ of sentence Intermediate People’s Court of Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture,

Sichuan Province

Sentence 4 years imprisonment and ? years deprivation of political rights

Defender unknown

Place of jail Aba Prison, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province

Situation in jail unknown







10. Jangtse Donkho (Rongke)

Name Jangtse Donkho (Rongke)

Pen name Nyen

Sex Male

Birth date 1978

Birth place Hongyuan County, Aba Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture,

Sichuan Province

Resident place Hongyuan County, Aba Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province

Education University

Profession Clerk at the County Annals office, Tibetan poet and editor of Tibetan newsletter “I, of

the Modern Century” (member of Writers Association of Sichuan Province, Honorary

Member of ICPC)

Date of arrest 2010-06-21 (detained), 2010-07-26(arrested)

Organ of arrest Public Security Bureau of Aba Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province

Cause of arrest publishing a critical article, How Many Human Rights Do We Have, in a Tibetan

monthly Shar Dhung-Ri (Eastern Snow Mountain)

Charge Inciting subversion of state power, suspicion of inciting split of the country (arrest)


Organ of sentence Intermediate People’s Court of Aba Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province

Sentence 4 years imprisonment

Defender no

Place of jail Detention Center of Ma’erkang (Barkam) County, Aba Tibetan Autonomous

Prefecture, Sichuan Province








11. Buddha

Name Buddha

Sex Male

Birth date 1979

Birth place Aba County, Aba Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture,

Sichuan Province

Resident place Aba County, Aba Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture,

Sichuan Province

Education Chongqing Medicine University

Profession Medical Doctor at a village clinic, Tibetan writer and editor of Tibetan newsletter “I,

of the Modern Century” (Honorary Member of ICPC)



Cause of arrest publishing a critical article, Review and Reflection, in a Tibetan monthly Shar

Dhung-Ri





Defender no

Place of jail Detention Center of Jinchuan County, Aba Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan

Province








12. Kalsang Jinpa

Name Kalsang Jinpa

Sex Male

Birth date 1977

Birth place Xiaohe County, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture,

Gansu Province

Resident place Aba County, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous


Education

Profession Tibetan writer and editor of Tibetan newsletter “I, of the Modern Century” (Honorary

Member of ICPC)



Cause of arrest publishing a critical article, Complaints with the Blood and Life, in a Tibetan monthly

Shar Dhung-Ri





Defender no

Place of jail Detention Center of Jinchuan County, Aba Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan

Province








13. Dokru Tsultrim

Name Dokru Tsultrim

Sex Male

Birth date 1983

Birth place Guinan County, Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture,

Qinghai Province

Resident place Gomang Temple, Aba County, Aba Tibetan Autonomous


Education

Profession Monk of Gomang Temple, Tibetan writer and editor of Tibetan literature journal

Khawai Tsesok (Life of Snow) (Honorary Member of ICPC)

Date of arrest 2010-05-24 (detained)

Organ of arrest Public Security Bureau of Ma’erkang (Barkam) County, Aba Tibetan Autonomous


Cause of arrest writing and preparing to publish a book on 2010 Yushu earthquake in his home

province of Qinghai, criticizing the government’s wrongdoings

Charge Inciting split of the country


Organ of sentence People’s Court of Barkam County, Aba Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan

Province

Sentence 4 years and 6 months imprisonment

Defender no

Place of jail Detention Center of Barkam County, Aba Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan

Province








14. Kunchok Tsephel Gopey Tsang

Name Kunchok Tsephel Gopey Tsang

Sex Male

Birth date 1970

Birth place Maqu County, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture,

Gansu Province

Resident place Maqu County, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture,

Gansu Province

Education Northwest Minorities University, Lanzhou City, Gansu Province; Central University

for Nationalities, Beijing

Profession official at Animal Husbandry Bureau of Maqu County, founder and editor of the

Tibetan language website Chomei (The Lamp) www.tibetcm.com (Honorary Member

of ICPC)


Organ of arrest Public Security Bureau of Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Gansu Province

Cause of arrest publishing online articles on the crackdown in the Tibet Autonomous Region in March

2008

Charge Leaking the state security

Date of sentence 2009-11-12 (closed)

Organ of sentence Intermediate People’s Court of Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Gansu

Province


Defender unknown

Place of jail Gannan Prison, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Gansu Province

Situation in jail Unknown







15. Kunga Tseyang

Name Kunga Tseyang

Pen name Gangnyi

Sex Male

Birth date 1989

Birth place Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province

Resident place Labrang monastery, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Gansu Province

Education Buddhism Institute of Labrang monastery, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture,

Gansu

Profession Monk, Tibetan writer, photographer and environmentalist (Honorary Member of

ICPC)


Organ of arrest Public Security Bureau of Hezuo Cuty, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture,

Gansu Province

Cause of arrest publishing online articles on Tibetan culture and the crackdown in the Tibet

Autonomous Region in March 2008

Charge Inciting split of the country and Leaking the state security


Organ of sentence People’s Court of Hezuo City, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Gansu

Province


Defender unknown

Place of jail Lanzhou Prison, Lanzhou City, Gansu Province

Situation in jail Unknown







16. Tsering WOESER

Name Tsering WOESER

Sex Female

Birth date 1966-07

Birth place Lhasa, Tibet

Resident place Beijing

Education graduated from Chengdu Southwest University for Nationalities

Profession Writer and poet

Woeser, a quarter-Han and three quarters-Tibetan, was born in Lhasa. In 1988, she graduated from Southwest

University for Nationalities in Chengdu with a degree in Chinese literature. She worked as a reporter in

Kardzé and later in Lhasa and has lived in Beijing since 2003 as a result of political problems. Woeser is

married to Wang Lixiong, a renowned author who frequently writes about Tibet.

Awards

In 2007, she was granted with the Norwegian Authors Union awards Freedom of Expression Prize; In 2007,

she was also granted with the freedom of speech medal by the Association of Tibetan Journalists; In 2009,

she was granted with the Lin Zhao Memory Award by Independent Chinese PEN Center, but can not go to

Hong Kong to participate the ceremony on 20 March 2010; In 2010, International Women's Media

Foundation granted her with the Courage in Journalism Awards; In 2011, Prince Claus Awards, theme

Breaking taboos.

Main Works

"Mémoire interdite. Témoignages sur la Révolution culturelle au Tibet", éd. Bleu de Chine, trad. Li Zhang &

Bernard Bourrit.2010

Tibet's True Heart (Selected Poems), trans. A. E. Clark , Dobbs Ferry, Ragged Banner Press 2008

Forbidden Memory - Tibet during the Cultural Revolution (杀劫), Locus Publishing, Taiwan, 2006

Notes of Tibet (西藏笔记), Hua Cheng Publishing House, Guangzhou, 2003; Also published in Taiwan as

Poems Named Tibet (名为西藏的诗), Locus Publishing, 2006

Tibet Travel Notes (西藏当代旅行记), The Tibet People's Publishing House, 2004

Crimson map (绛红色的地图), Shihying Publisher, Taiwan, 2003; China Travel & Tourism Press, 2004






17. David TSUI (XU Zerong)

Name David TSUI (XU Zerong)

Pen name Gao Weiguo

Sex Male


Birth place Wuhan City, Hubei Province

Resident place Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province; Permanent residence in Hong Kong

Education PhD. in politic science at St Antony's College, Oxford University, 1999

Profession Professor, researcher and publisher (Member of ICPC, Honorary Member of Ghanaian

PEN Center)

Date of arrest 2000-06-24 (detained) / 2000-07-29 (arrest)

Organ of arrest National Security Bureau of Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province

Cause of arrest Writing and publishing articles on China's support to the armed unrests of Malaian

Communists in 1950-60s

Charge Illegally providing overseas with information and illegal business on publication

Date of sentence 2001-12-20, 2002-12 (appeal)

Organ of sentence Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court, High People's Court of Guangdong

Sentence 13 years imprisonment, 3 years deprivation of political rights, and fine of 50, 000CNY

Defender Lawyer HUANG Kengru

Place of jail Xicun Prison, Nanjing Road 14, Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province

Situation in jail Hypertension severer and no permission for family visit until Dec. 2002, high blood

pressure.

Date of release 2011-06-23 (reduced by 2 years)

Telephone +44 -7551501615

Email [email protected]






18. YU Jie

Name YU Jie

Sex Male


Birth place Chengdu City, Sichuan Province

Resident place US

Education Master at Beijing University

Profession Writer


Yu Jie was admitted to Peking University in 1992. In 1997 Yu received a Bachelor of Arts degree, and in

2000 earned a Master of Arts degree. He was elected of board member of the Independent Chinese PEN

Center from 2003-2009 and its vice-president from 2005-2007. In January 2012, he went to the US with his

family to seek for political asylum. After his arrive he published a statement which revealed how he was

kidnapped and tortured shortly after Liu Xiaobo was announced the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize.

Awards

In 1998, Yu published his first book, Fire and Ice, for which he was honored with the "Top Ten Good Books"

literary award by the Xishu reading club;

In 2000, the Yu's political commentary, "Fight for Freedom", received the "Most Acute Comment of the

Year" by "Yazhou Zhoukan" (Asia Weekly);

In 2002, Yu Jie was awarded the "Certificate of Achievement" from Chan's Foundation of Journalism and

Culture, in New York, USA;

In 2006, Yu published a novel, Vanilla Mountain, for which he was awarded the "Tang Qing Christian

Literature Award" of Hong Kong.

Main Works

Fire and Ice, Economy Daily Press, China, 1998

Screams within Iron House, Chinese Industry & Commerce Syndicate Press, 1998

To Say, or not to Say, Culture and Art Publishing House, China, 1999

Awkward Times, Yue Lu Publishing House, China, 1999

Civilization Pain (Self Anthology), Bai Hua Publishing House, China, 1999

Fly the Wings, China Film Publishing House, 2000

The Road of Wandering Hero - The Mind History of the Transformation Intellectuals in our times, Taiwan

Linking Publishing Co., 2009

China's Best Actor: Wen Jiabao, New Century Publishing Co., 2010






19. LIAO Yiwu

Name LIAO Yiwu

Pen name Lao Wei

Sex Male

Birth date 1958

Birth place Yanting County, Sichuan Province

Resident place Germany

Education Studied in Wuhan University

Profession Writer and poet


Liao was born in 1958. In 1966 his father was branded a counter-revolutionary during the Chinese Cultural

Revolution. Liao's parents filed for divorce to protect the children. After High School, Liao traveled around

the country and started composing his poems and was getting published in literary magazines. He failed the

university entrance exams and began to work for a newspaper. On June 1989, after hearing about the

Tiananmen Square protests, Liao composed a long poem entitled "Massacre". He made an audiotape and

recited the poem by using Chinese ritualistic chanting and howling, invoking the spirits of the dead. He and

his friends made a movie, the sequel of Massacre, "Requiem". He was arrested in February 1990 and

sentenced four years in prison. While in prison, due to torture and abusive punishment, he suffered several

mental breakdowns and twice attempted suicide. From a fellow prisoner, an elderly monk, he learned to play

the Xiao. He then began to interview other prisoners about their lives. When he was released from prison, his

wife and their daughter had left him, and his former literary friends kept their distance. He lived for a while

as a homeless street musician in Chengdu, collecting stories. Liao processed the time in prison with his book

Testimonials. In 1998 he compiled The Fall of the Holy Temple, an anthology of underground poems from

the 1970s, mainly from Chinese dissidents. One of China's vice premiers called it a "premeditated attempt to

overthrow the government, and is supported by powerful anti-China groups." In 2001 his multi-volume

Interviews with People from the Bottom Rung of Society was published in Taiwan. The book consists of

transcribed interviews with people on the margins of Chinese society, from "hustlers to drifters, outlaws and

street performers, the officially renegade and the physically handicapped, those who deal with human waste

and with the wasting of humans, artists and shamans, crooks, even cannibals." It is currently banned in China,

like most of his works. He was arrested several times for conducting "illegal interviews" and for exposing the

dark side of the Communist Party. In 2008 he signed the Charter 08 of his friend Liu Xiaobo, although he

says of himself that he is not really interested in politics, just in his stories. In May 2008, after the Sichuan

earthquake, Liao went to the disaster region and interviewed survivors fighting corrupt officials. This

material was published as Chronicles of the Big Earthquake in Hong Kong in 2009. After having been denied

permission to leave the country many times, he wrote an open letter to Chancellor of Germany Angela

Merkel in February 2010. Later that year he was allowed to leave the country for the first time. He visited

Germany accepting invitations to literary festivals in Hamburg and Berlin as well as to an event in Cologne.

He held numerous readings and gave interviews. After entering back to China, he was denied permission to

leave the country again. Then he arrived in Germany on July 6, 2011, having left China overland by crossing

the border with Vietnam. Liao is former board member and current Honorary board member of the






Independent Chinese PEN Center.

Awards

In 2007, he granted Freedom to Write Award by the Independent Chinese PEN Center. Authorities prevented

him from attending the award ceremony in Beijing. In 2011 he was awarded the German

Geschwister-Scholl-Preis.

Main Works

The Fall of the Holy Temple,1998

Interviews with the Lower Strata of Chinese Society, 2 volumes, Changjiang Publishing House, China,2001

(banned by the Chinese Communist Party Propaganda Department and the PRC Government's Publications

Office)

Interviews with the Lower Strata of Chinese Society, 3 volumes, Maitian Publishing House, Taiwan, 2002

The Corpse Walker,2002

China's Unjust Court Cases, Volume 1, The Laogai Research Foundation, Washington, D.C., 2003

China's Petitioner Villages, Mirror Publishing Co., 2005, USA

China's Unjust Court Cases, Volume 2, The Laogai Research Foundation, Washington, D.C., 2005

The Last of China's Landlords (two volumes), The Laogai Research Foundation, Washington D.C., 2008

Earthquake Insane Asylum, in Taiwan 2009; French edition 2010.

Forthcoming: Shepherds of the Far East, in the U.S., 2011, and its English translation God is Red scheduled

for publication by Harper Collins in the United States in August 2011

Testimonials, An expanded German translation will be published in Germany by Fischer in June 2011






20. ZHOU Qing

Name ZHOU Qing

Sex Male

Birth date 1966

Birth place Xi’an City, Shanxi Province

Resident place Germany

Education studied at the Lu Xun Literary Institute and at Northwest

University, Xi'an

Profession Writer, journalist and editor (Member of ICPC)

Email: [email protected]

Zhou Qing was born in Xi'an, Shanxi Province, China. He studied at the Lu Xun Literary Institute and at

Northwest University, Xi'an. In 1989 he was imprisoned for two years, after taking part in the pro-democracy

demonstrations at Tiananmen Square. His sentence was extended by eight months for refusing to rehabilitate

and attempting to escape. Zhou is a journalist, editor and a researcher into Chinese folk and oral history. He

is the former director of the Xi'an Cang Xie Cultural Research Institute, and was chief editor of Folk

magazine, Economy & Trade, Shen Zhen edition, and managing editor of the newspaper Legends & Stories,

and chief editor of the magazine Oral Museum. Zhou Qing spent two years researching the murky world of

Chinese food and in 2004 China's most important reportage magazine Baogao Wenxue (Reportage Literature)

published his long article: Min Yihe Shi Wei Tian. Zhongguo Shipin Anquan Xianzhuang Diaocha ('What

Kind of God'. A Survey of the Current Safety of China's Food). In his reportage, Zhou Qing exposes a topic

that the authorities have striven to keep hidden. He interviewed food manufacturers and restaurant owners,

fish farmers, peasants, traders, doctors, and consumers. He discovered shocking practices such as the use of

contraceptive pills to accelerate fish farming, the pesticide DDT to keep pickles from going off, hormones

used to replace foodstuffs, salt that is chemically enhanced, industrial oil altered to make cooking oil. The

difficulty and danger of carrying out this work was, in the author's own words, 'More dangerous than chasing

after drug dealers!' In 2006, he was granted with the Lettre Ulysses Award. In 2009, he was granted with the

Freedom to Write Award by the Independent Chinese PEN Center. Zhou is now living in Germany as a guest

writer.






21. JIAO Guobiao

Name JIAO Guobiao

Sex Male

Birth date 1963

Birth place Qi County, Henan Province

Resident place Beijing

Education Bachelor of Arts in Chinese in 1986 and Master of Arts in

Classic Chinese in 1989 from Henan University, PhD in Journalism from the

People's University, Beijing in 1996

Profession Writer and teacher (Member of WiPC, ICPC)

Telephone: +86-133 6658 6793

Email: [email protected]

Jiao Guobiao was formerly an associate professor at Peking University's College of Journalism and

Communications until he was dismissed. A prominent journalist at Chinese Cultural Newspaper from 1996 to

2001, he has published widely on issues of journalism in China. He explored historical and contemporary

perspectives on the Chinese media, and analyzed the impact of the Internet in China. He wrote a series of

articles on the challenges and prospects for the media in China, for eventual publication as a book. In the

spring of 2004, Jiao wrote an essay titled Denouncing the Central Propaganda Department (of CPC,

Communist Party of China). Following the appearance online of his March 2004 essay condemning the

Chinese government's Central Propaganda Department (Denouncing the Central Propaganda Department)

and his continued efforts to promote freedom of the press and human rights in China, he was suspended from

his teaching duties.

Main Works

On Dedication and Volunteerism (a collection of journalistic commentaries), Overseas Chinese Publisher,

1998

The Journalistic Careers of Cultural Celebrities (concerning history of journalism), Fujiang People’s

Publisher, 1999

Sensitivities Outside the News (a collection of journalistic commentaries), China Development Publisher,

2000

The Sorrow from Independence (a collection of journalistic commentaries), People’s Publisher of Xinjiang,

2001

Denouncing the Ministry of Central Propaganda (a collection of journalistic writings translated and

published in Japanese), Chaoshi Publisher, Tokyo, 2004






供媒体在供媒体在供媒体在供媒体在 2102年年年年 4月月月月 12日日日日发发发发表表表表

世界作家就伦敦书展世界作家就伦敦书展世界作家就伦敦书展世界作家就伦敦书展给英国文化协会的信给英国文化协会的信给英国文化协会的信给英国文化协会的信（（（（2012201220122012 年年年年 4444 月月月月 10101010 日日日日））））

敬启者：

我们注意到你们在本月已经邀请中国新闻出版总署参加伦敦书展，而这个机构长期以来封杀

2010 年诺贝尔和平奖得主刘晓波博士及大量异议作家的作品，并将带着精心挑选的 181 家出

版社和 31 名官方作家来伦敦展示被它审查过的文学成果。

为了让英国作家和读者全面了解中国文学和中国作家的处境，我们仅介绍给你们一部分在中

国遭到全面封杀甚至因作品而被监禁的作家，他们和刘晓波一样，已失去了写作自由乃至人

身自由，更希望得到英国文化协会的支持。我们希望能通过你们的支持，向英国同行和大众

介绍和朗诵他们的文学作品——小说、诗歌和散文，以及他们的获罪作品。在一个政治恐惧

的社会中，这些源自民间的文学资源非常珍贵。他们中的独立中文笔会会员和荣誉会员就有：

正在服 11 年刑的文学评论家、诗人刘晓波和他已被软禁一年半的妻子、诗人刘霞，在坐牢 9

年获释后不久前主要因一首诗歌又被判 7 年徒刑的作家朱虞夫，坐牢 10 后又被判刑 12 年的

小说家、诗人杨同彦（杨天水），正在服 10 年刑的记者、诗人师涛、正在服刑 10 年的维吾尔

小说家、诗人亚辛，正在服 5 年刑的环保工作者、作家谭作人，在狱中被折磨成植物人才获

保外就医后很快去逝的诗人、小说家张建红（力虹），坐牢 11 后于去年获释的牛津学者徐泽

荣博士，因作品遭毒打酷刑而在年初被迫出走美国的作家余杰，去年被迫流亡德国的作家、

诗人廖亦武，遭封杀暂留德国的作家周勍，在北京被长期封杀的作家焦国标，被禁止入境中

国的旅英小说家马健和旅德诗人贝岭等，特别是希望英国同行和大众听到被囚在北京家中的

藏人女作家唯色的声音，让英国读者了解为什么今天西藏正发生着空前最大规模的连续自焚

悲剧。而一些了解真相的藏区作家和学者，卓玛嘉、扎西绕登（扎西热丹）、东科、布旦、尕

让云巴、卓日次成、贡却才培、更嘎仓央等数十人被关进了监狱。仅笔会收集的个案中，在

中国因言获罪关押的作家就达 40 多人。

英国文化协会强调：邀请的是在中国写作的中国作家，让英国人了解中国文学，促进文化交

流。我们不禁要问，难道了解中国文学就应该只根据中国官方的推荐吗？难道不需要了解那

些得不到官方推荐甚至被封杀的作家及其作品吗？哈维尔当年被捷克当局关押和封杀的作品

就应该忽略吗？布罗斯基在国内遭封杀和被迫流亡后的创作就不属于苏俄文学吗？鲁西迪爵

士离开印度后就不再能促进英印文化交流吗？我们认为这观点对被封杀、被监禁、被流放的

作家极为不公。伦敦是国际笔会的发源地，关注遭受政治迫害，救助狱中作家本是英国的人

文传统。也是在这基础上我们恳请英国文化协会注意到在中国遭封杀的作家及其作品的状况。

我们还注意到你们使用了“中国文学” 这一称谓。正如官方作家代表政府一样，中国新闻出

版总署所容许的官方文学仅仅只是中国文学的极为有限的部分，主要也就是所谓 “中国特色

的社会主义文学” 而已，远不能体现中国文学的全貌。中国文学必须包括遭官方封杀的超越

官方审查之外的民间文学、异端文学、地下文学、狱中文学和流亡文学。因此，请不要认同






中国官方的混淆视听，误导英国作家和读者。

作家失去了自由而受制于官方，这个社会也就不自由了。英国文化协会如果真想自由文明地

进行文化交流，那么就请关注中国民间社会的独立作家及其作品，特别那些是失去自由、被

新闻出版总署查禁不能参加伦敦书展的作家与作品。

我们期待着您的回音。

联署者联署者联署者联署者：：：：

独立中文笔会

德国笔会

瑞士法语笔会

圣米格尔笔会

葡萄牙笔会

荷兰笔会

立陶宛笔会

悉尼笔会

德语海外作家笔会

加拿大笔会

魁北克笔会

维吾尔笔会

西藏海外作家笔会

世界语笔会狱中作家委员会

比利时荷兰语笔会理事吉尔楚伊·丹姆，狱中作家委员会主席泽维尔·热伦斯，成员尤里斯·格

尼茨，弗兰克·沃斯和希尔德·克特勒尔

苏格兰笔会会员、爱丁堡龙比亚大学巴夏碧·弗雷泽博士

柏林国际文学节主席乌尔里希·施赖伯

柏林马丁格罗皮尤斯展览馆馆长席维尔尼希教授

北京之春杂志社

齐氏文化基金会

倾向出版社

（欢迎联署）

更多信息更多信息更多信息更多信息,请联系请联系请联系请联系

独立中文笔会独立中文笔会独立中文笔会独立中文笔会

1) 廖天琪廖天琪廖天琪廖天琪，会长

电话：+49-176-5472 3721, +49-176-5472 3721(m)

电邮：[email protected]

2) 潘嘉伟潘嘉伟潘嘉伟潘嘉伟，理事兼常务秘书

电话：+852-94173765

电邮：[email protected]






3）张裕张裕张裕张裕, 副秘书长兼发行和翻译委员会协调人

电话：+46-8-50022792

电邮：[email protected], [email protected]

网页：http://www.chinesepen.org and http://www.liuxiaobo.eu/

icpc letter to british council

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