LEADING ARTIST Ai Weiwei and one of China’s most prominent economists, Mao Yushi, were prevented from leaving the country yesterday because authorities are worried they may try to attend the Nobel ceremony next week in Oslo – which will give the Peace Prize to jailed dissident Liu Xiaobo.
Mr Mao was stopped en route to Singapore one day after the controversial artist Mr Ai was prevented from boarding an aircraft to South Korea, where he was setting up an exhibition.
The Chinese leadership has angrily denounced the Nobel committee, saying that awarding the prize next Friday to Mr Liu was tantamount to “encouraging crime”. His wife Liu Xia has been placed under house arrest.
Mr Ai said stopping him from leaving was “really silly”. “I think there’s a direct connection with next week’s Nobel Peace Prize award – the Chinese government is very upset about this,” he said.
Last month Mo Shaoping, a prominent human rights lawyer whose firm represents Mr Liu, was stopped at Beijing airport as he tried to fly to Britain, because the Chinese government believed his actual destination was Oslo.
There has been a broad crackdown on government critics since Mr Liu won the prize on October 8th.
Mr Liu (54) was sentenced to 11 years in prison last December on subversion charges after co-authoring the Charter 08 petition calling for political reform in China. It was widely circulated online and signed by thousands, including Mr Mao.
The 81-year-old was due to attend an event in Singapore when he was detained, even though he said he had never had any trouble before. He was told that he was stopped from leaving because he was “jeopardising national security”.
Neither he nor Mr Ai had been invited to the ceremony.