Prague: Former Czech President Vaclav Havel
has joined forces with lawmakers and anti-communist dissidents
to nominate a Chinese dissident for the 2010 Nobel Peace
Prize.
Liu Xiaobo was sentenced in December to 11 years in
prison for co-writing an appeal titled ''Charter 08'' calling
for expanded political freedoms in China and an end to
Communist Party dominance.
The document was modeled on the Charter 77 human
rights manifesto co-written by Havel, then a dissident
playwright and later president of Czechoslovakia and the Czech
Republic.
Senator Alexandr Vondra said Wednesday that 40 Czech
lawmakers and dozens of those who signed the original Charter
77 support the nomination.
Havel joined the initiative with a separate nomination
signed by international figures, including the Dalai Lama.
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, February 03, 2010, 20:07