David L. Chaplin II
Impunity Watch, Asia
BEIJING, China – Ai WeiWei, the brain behind the birds-nest stadium which was the centerpiece of Beijing’s Olympic Games, and outspoken activist was detained by police at Beijing airport in a widening crackdown on resistance across the country.
His wife told Agence France Press on Monday that police in Beijing had refused to disclose why they detained the artist, the internationally acclaimed artist, has now been missing for over a week.
Ai Weiwei’s believes firmly in the freedom of speech and the right to speak up on behalf of others who have been brutally silenced for their efforts to change society for the better.
His public comments, activities and art are some of the loudest, most flagrantly defiant forms of speech in China today, in a time where government controls on the Internet and traditional media limit freedom in their civil society.
Citizens urge their government to treat their people with respect as a matter of basic justice and humanity.
More than 20 dissidents and activists have been held in the past weeks reports Human Rights Watch.
China’s authorities appear on edge over calls for a so-called Jasmine Revolution, partly inspired by pro-democracy movements in the Middle East.
The artist was stopped while passing through security checks for a flight to Hong Kong with an assistant, Jennifer Ng.
Ms. Ng was allowed to continue on her journey to Hong Kong only after the documents of both were searched thoroughly.
She told the BBC that Ai Weiwei was taken away by border guards.
A few hours later, more than 40 police officers raided the artist’s Beijing studio.
Dozens of items were confiscated, said another assistant, and several people were taken to a nearby police station, although they were released a few hours later.
Some of his work has political connotations, he tried to gather the names of every school child who died during the Sichuan earthquake in 2008.
This is a sensitive subject as many schools fell down in the earthquake, leading to claims that they were poorly built.
The Chinese government has made it a point to arrest activists who bring this issue up, says the BBC’s Michael Bristow in Beijing.
France, Germany and the United States have called for the immediate release of a Chinese artist and dissident, detained in China.
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle called on China for an “urgent explanation” of his fate.
A spokesman for the French foreign ministry said the country was “very concerned” about his disappearance.
“We hope he will be released as soon as possible,” Bernard Valero said, adding that the French government was following events “very closely”.
Human rights group Amnesty International said Mr Ai’s arrest showed that “China’s time for open dissent has come to an end”.
The detention adds to the lengthening list of dissidents held in a security crackdown by a government determined to snuff out any hint of challenges to its power as it approaches a leadership transition in late 2012.
Under Chinese law, the authorities must inform relatives within 24 hours when someone is brought in for questioning and 48 hours if he or she is arrested. However, the rule is often disregarded.
For more information, please see:
Human Rights Watch – China: Arrests, Disappearances Require International Response – 31 March 2011
BBC – Concern mounts over missing Chinese artist Ai Weiwei – 5 April 2011
The West Australian – “No information” in disappearance of China dissident – 4 April 2011
Asia News – China West protests “disappearance” of renowned artist Ai Weiwei, but another 200 are also detained – 5 April 2011
