Asia-Pacific News
Daughters of executed Chinese scientist say confession was forced
Dec 1, 2008, 13:30 GMT
Vienna - The daughters of Chinese biochemist and businessman Wo Weihan, who was executed in China last week on espionage charges, said Monday that their father had been forced to make his confession.
Ran Chen and Di Chen, both Austrian citizens, made the claim in an open letter to the Austrian government, which had been fighting to prevent Wo's execution.
'The verdict was made under unclear circumstances, but certainly on the basis of a confession made under violent duress, which was revoked by our father,' the women said in the letter.
Wo, 60, was executed last Friday after having been convicted in 2007 of passing secret Chinese military data to Taiwan.
As Wo lived in Austria in the 1990s, the country's government sharply protested the execution and called in the Chinese embassy's charge d'affaires to the Austrian foreign ministry on Friday.
The European Union presidency, currently held by France, also condemned China's action.
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DiogenesDec 1st, 2008 - 20:26:52
Let's see, this guy went to a library and got the information he was accused of passing along to the Taiwanese and it also appears that he was guilty of passing on some gossip about some high muckity-muck in the Communist Party. What else did he do? Chew gum and not bring enough for everyone in the class?
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What actually did he pass along to the Taiwanese? Why was it in a library? Has the Chinese government given his body back to his family? Was he actually executed? Inquiring minds want to know!
Can you imagine the hue and cry if the US pulled this kind of stunt?
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