Yang Jianli benefit will honor FrankFirst Parish of Brookline Wednesday, September 17, 2003
A benefit planned for the Jianli Defense Fund will Honor Representative Barney Frank on on Sunday, Sept. 21 from 3-6 p.m. at the First Parish of Brookline. Speakers include Jared Genser, president of Freedom Now and attorney for Yang Jianli, Joshua Rubenstein, director of Northeastern Amnesty International and Wang Dan who was among the student leaders at the Tiananmen Square uprising in 1989. Dr. Yang Jianli has been incarcerated in China since April 2002 after entering China with a false passport. He had been blacklisted and unable to return to his home country since his support of the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989. Yang was later charged with espionage and is being held prisoner in Beijing. He went on trial for both charges last month. However, there is still no verdict. Dr. Yang and his wife, Christina Fu, are residents of Brookline. He is founder and head of the Foundation for China in the 21st Century based here. His detention in China and his wife's efforts to obtain his release have attracted national attention. Both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, under the leadership of Frank, unanimously passed resolutions that condemned the lengthy incommunicado detention of Dr. Yang and the lack of due process afforded to him. Both the Senate and the House have called for his immediate and unconditional release by the Chinese government. Further information on Dr. Yang's case is available at www.yangjianli.com. Tickets for the Sept. 21 benefit dinner are $50 per person and may be ordered by contacting manciniart @ mac.com or calling 617-734-1889.
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