Brussels: The European Union on Friday pressed
China to immediately release jailed dissident Liu Xiaobo, who
was awarded the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo in his absence.
"On this day dedicated to human rights defenders around
the world my thoughts are with Liu Xiaobo," the foreign policy
chief of the 27-nation bloc, Catherine Ashton said, adding
that the dissident was in jail for "peacefully expressing his
views about political reforms in China."
"I reiterate my call for his immediate release," she
said in a statement here.
Earlier in the Norwegian capital, Oslo the head of the
Nobel Committee, Thorbjoern Jagland placed the Peace Prize
diploma and gold medal on an empty chair representing Liu at
the award ceremony.
Liu, 54, is an author who was at the forefront of the
1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests. He was jailed in
2009 for 11 years on subversion charges after he sought
political reform and greater human rights for 1.3 billion
Chinese people.
PTI
