French police arrest activists during Hu's visit (Roundup)

Nov 5, 2010, 18:26 GMT

Paris - French security forces arrested six activists on Friday who greeted visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao with umbrellas calling for jailed civil rights activist Liu Xiaobo to be released, the activist group Reporters Without Borders said.

Four of its members were among the arrested activists, who opened the umbrellas emblazoned with 'Free Liu Xiaobo' as Hu's motorcade passed by in the capital Paris.

Some 20 Reporters Without Borders members and a journalist were also briefly detained by police at a metro station, the group said.

Liu was awarded this year's Nobel Peace Prize despite protests from the Chinese government. He is serving his fourth prison term, an 11-year sentence, after being charged with sedition.

Hu arrived in France on Thursday for a three-day visit that is expected to produce contracts between Chinese and French firms worth an estimated 28 billion dollars to French industry.

They include a Chinese order with the aviation company Airbus for 102 planes at a list-price value of some 14 billion dollars.

Activists have accused French President Nicolas Sarkozy of putting economic interests ahead of human rights issues.

On Friday, Hu met with former president Jacques Chirac and Prime Minister Francois Fillon. In a press statement, Fillon emphasized the importance of industrial partnerships and scientific exchanges between the two countries. No mention was made of human rights.

Further talks were planned between Hu and Sarkozy for the afternoon and evening in the southern town of Nice. The focus of the talks was reportedly to be the upcoming meeting of G20 nations in Seoul next week.

Sarkozy and Hu are not scheduled to hold any press conferences during the visit, apparently in a bid to avoid awkward questions.

Hu is set to travel on to Portugal on Saturday.

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