Internationally renowned scholars sign a letter to Xi Jinping calling for Guo Feixiong to be allowed to visit his sick wife in the U.S.

A number of internationally renowned scholars have signed a letter to Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang in solidarity with Guangdong rights activist Guo Feixiong’s right to travel abroad, calling on China to allow Guo to visit his wife in the United States, who is seriously ill.

Geremie Barmé, founder of Whitewater College in New Zealand; Donald C. Clarke, professor at George Washington University Law School; Perry Link, Chancellor’s Distinguished Professor at the University of California, Riverside; Andrew J. Nathan, professor of political science at Columbia University; and the international human rights organization, Human Rights Watch. In the letter, the co-authors, including Donald C. Clarke, Chancellor’s Chair Professor at the University of California, Riverside; Perry Link, Chancellor’s Chair Professor at the University of California, Riverside; Andrew J. Nathan, Professor of Political Science at Columbia University; and Sophie Richardson, Director of China for the international human rights organization Human Rights Watch, note that Guo Feixiong is widely respected for his advocacy activities, including promoting the rule of law. cancer treatment.

On Jan. 28 of this year, Guo Feixiong was scheduled to board a flight to the United States at Shanghai Pudong International Airport, but was intercepted and subsequently lost contact with the outside world. It is assumed that Guo was detained by the Chinese authorities.

The letter highlights the fact that U.S. permanent resident Zhang Qing faces serious health challenges and urgently needs the support of her husband. The scholars asked the Chinese government to allow Guo Feixiong to travel to the United States to be with his wife.

The letter also calls on all sectors of the community to join a solidarity petition through the China Human Rights Defenders website by February 7.

Guo Feixiong was reportedly banned from Shanghai Pudong Airport last Thursday and immediately announced a hunger strike, but he was then taken away by authorities and his whereabouts remain unknown.