The “mesh structure” at Chen Guangcheng’s home in Dongshigu Village was designed to be impenetrable, a high-tech net draped over a single blind man. Yet, on the night of April 22, 2012, the unthinkable happened. By timing his guards’ movements and drawing on his intimate, tactile knowledge of the terrain, Chen Guangcheng scaled eight walls and waded through freezing river water. After a harrowing journey across the countryside, he was met by fellow activists He Peirong and Guo Yushan. The “Barefoot Lawyer” had vanished from his cage, sparking a frantic manhunt that ended at the only place the local authorities could not reach: the heart of the U.S. Embassy in Beijing.
Secret meeting and the U.S.-China game
Around noon on April 26, Chen Guangcheng and his companions received a message from the U.S. Embassy that Washington had agreed to provide full support. They arranged to meet at 1:00 PM. However, on their way to the rendezvous, they discovered that the National Security Bureau was shadowing their vehicle.
Chen Guangcheng recalled: “As soon as we got in the car, four spy cars followed closely behind. We immediately contacted the embassy, and the embassy’s car followed closely behind. However, the embassy’s car was unable to get close to the spy cars, resulting in a high-speed chase. For about an hour, we maneuvered around the spy cars on the streets of Beijing until we finally reached the embassy gate.” Seizing a split-second opportunity, Chen Guangcheng’s friends helped him scramble into the U.S. diplomatic vehicle. The driver surged the vehicle forward, bringing Chen Guangcheng safely behind the embassy’s protective walls.
…
Read the full article on Nspirement
Comments