IN BEIJING Police prevented two prominent human rights lawyers from leaving China on Tuesday, the latest in a series of recent moves against activists and dissidents that underscores the contradiction between the country's professed commitment to the rule of law and the legal gray area in which its security apparatus sometimes operates.
"This kind of restriction of the freedom of person has absolutely no legal basis," said Mo Shaoping, one of the lawyers who was not permitted to board a flight to attend an International Bar Association conference in London. When asked why, the police could produce no written notice, the lawyers said, but offered only that the two might "threaten national security" if allowed to travel abroad.
Over the past month, since jailed pro-democracy activist Liu Xiaobo was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, a handful of lawyers and dissidents - and Liu's wife, Liu Xia - have been subjected to a form of house arrest, prohibited from leaving their apartments or meeting with journalists. Some, like the two lawyers, have been prevented from traveling, as the government fears Liu Xiaobo's supporters might try to attend the Dec. 10 Nobel ceremony in Oslo. But Mo, who said he had already checked his luggage when police detained him, said he had a return ticket and no intention of going to Norway.
China - increasingly open, modern and economically powerful - wants to be seen as a country that abides by the rule of law, with an independent judiciary.
The official state-run news agency reported Tuesday that China's State Council - the equivalent of the cabinet - had issued new guidelines ordering officials to adhere to the rule of law. It is "important" and "imperative" to build a government ruled by law, the State Council said.
Read more at The Washington Post
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