Chen phones in plea to U.S Congress

In a dramatic turn of events, blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng phoned in to a U.S. congressional hearing Thursday, May 3, from a Beijing hospital and pleaded for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to help get him to America. Clinton is at present in China for crucial bilateral talks. “I want to meet with Secretary Clinton. I hope I can get more help from her,” Chen told Rep Chris Smith in a phone call carried live on the speaker system where Chen’s case was being examined in a congressional commission on human rights in China. Chen helped expose abuses in China’s one-child policy in his home province, escaping house arrest on April 22 and making his way to the US Embassy in Beijing. He left Wednesday, May 2, but has repeatedly expressed fears for his life. He earlier told CNN he wanted to go to America.

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