China executes scientist.

[NoShangriLa]

China Abruptly Executes Convicted Spy

BEIJING, Nov. 28 -- China on Friday executed a man convicted of passing sensitive military and political information to Taiwan a day after notifying his relatives through diplomatic channels that they would have a second chance to visit him, his daughter said.

Austrian Deputy Ambassador Stefan Scholz relayed the news of the execution late Friday afternoon to the family of Wo Weihan, 60, according to Wo's daughter Ran Chen. Chen is an Austrian citizen and had been appealing for clemency through diplomatic channels since arriving in Beijing on Monday. She said she had been told her father was executed by gunshot.

Wo was put to death even as Chinese and E.U. officials were wrapping up a summit on human rights here in Beijing. The sequence of events raises the question of whether the Chinese government had merely waited until the summit ended to carry out the execution. Capital punishment is at the top of the European Union's human rights agenda with China, Scholz said Friday morning, before he learned of Wo's execution.

The news shocked Wo's family members, who at a Thursday afternoon news conference had praised China's willingness to grant them a second visit and said they had not lost hope that Chinese officials would commute Wo's sentence based on what they said were numerous legal flaws in the case against him.

Chen said that her father had not been told of his impending execution when she met with him Thursday morning and that she never received written confirmation that his final appeal to the Supreme People's Court had been turned down.

"Our father was a Chinese citizen and is subject to Chinese law," Chen wrote in a statement released Friday evening. "But the Chinese law also says that death row prisoners deserve the right to see their families before execution, to say goodbye and to go in peace."

Chen said her parents had raised her and her sister to respect Chinese values of gratitude to and love for their parents. "The legal procedures in China, which we experienced in these last traumatic days, show no regard for these values," she said.

The family expressed outrage at the breakdown in communication. "We're extremely frustrated," said Chen's husband, Michael Rolufs, after hearing word of the execution from private contacts but before receiving confirmation through official channels.

Calls to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Austrian Embassy on Friday night went unanswered.

John Kamm, executive director of the Dui Hua Foundation, a human rights group in San Francisco who has worked closely with Chen on the case, reacted with anger and disbelief when reached by phone Friday evening.

"I have been doing this work for 19 years, and this is the absolute lowest point of those 19 years," he said. "I am devastated."

I just love the dogma justice system of Komunist China.

 

[Farang]

I think it all depends on whether he was guilty or not. I'm against the death penalty in general though so I think the U.S. is just as bad, who cares if they don't get to see him the bigger problem is he is being executed.

 

[NoShangriLa]

Originally posted by: Farang
I think it all depends on whether he was guilty or not. I'm against the death penalty in general though so I think the U.S. is just as bad, who cares if they don't get to see him the bigger problem is he is being executed.

He was detained & interrogated for more than a year with out representation. I believe that the quick move for execution was on the dead men tell no tales mantra.

 

[jpeyton]

Convicted spy.

Treason carries the death penalty in the USA, too.

 

[miketheidiot]

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Convicted spy.

Treason carries the death penalty in the USA, too.

apologist spotted.

 

[NoShangriLa]

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Convicted spy.

Treason carries the death penalty in the USA, too.

China has executed a scientist accused of spying for Taiwan.

The family of Wo Weihan, 59, had appealed for clemency, saying that he was tortured into admitting that he was a spy

Wo Weihan, a case for Taipei [UPDATED

The reason why Taipei should follow Amnesty and Wo?s daughter, Ran Chen, in appealing to Beijing to extend the stay of execution is that aside from China executing more people annually than any other country (470 documented cases last year), there are indications that Wo did not face a fair trial: He was not represented by a lawyer, the trial was held behind closed doors, and he was forced to make a confession while in detention, which he later recanted.

Furthermore, the nature of the accusations ? even if they turned out to be true ? certainly should not carry the death sentence. Wo was found guilty (the indictment actually reads ?might?) of discussing the health of Chinese leaders, which under Chinese law is considered a ?state secret,? as well as passing on, or ?leaking,? unclassified publications available in library (subsequently classified) to a group with alleged ties to Taiwanese intelligence.

 

[chess9]

Originally posted by: NoShangriLa

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Convicted spy.

Treason carries the death penalty in the USA, too.

China has executed a scientist accused of spying for Taiwan.

The family of Wo Weihan, 59, had appealed for clemency, saying that he was tortured into admitting that he was a spy

Wo Weihan, a case for Taipei [UPDATED

The reason why Taipei should follow Amnesty and Wo?s daughter, Ran Chen, in appealing to Beijing to extend the stay of execution is that aside from China executing more people annually than any other country (470 documented cases last year), there are indications that Wo did not face a fair trial: He was not represented by a lawyer, the trial was held behind closed doors, and he was forced to make a confession while in detention, which he later recanted.

Furthermore, the nature of the accusations ? even if they turned out to be true ? certainly should not carry the death sentence. Wo was found guilty (the indictment actually reads ?might?) of discussing the health of Chinese leaders, which under Chinese law is considered a ?state secret,? as well as passing on, or ?leaking,? unclassified publications available in library (subsequently classified) to a group with alleged ties to Taiwanese intelligence.

Good grief....That's really flimsy stuff. This sounds very much like a political prosecution. He obviously pissed off someone!

-Robert

 

[irishScott]

Simple Truth: In China you have no rights. If the government wants to get rid of you for any reason, they will, and there's next to nothing you can do about it unless you're rich/have your own political clout. In short: most Chinese citizens are fucked if it comes down to it.

 

[Red Dawn]

Originally posted by: irishScott
Simple Truth: In China you have no rights. If the government wants to get rid of you for any reason, they will, and there's next to nothing you can do about it unless you're rich/have your own political clout. In short: most Chinese citizens are fucked if it comes down to it.

As if it's any different than the last 1500 years? It doesn't matter if they are Communist, Nationalist, Imperialist or what ever, the common man in China has always lived a life of peril.

 

[manowar821]

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Convicted spy.

Treason carries the death penalty in the USA, too.

Treason is not anywhere NEAR a good enough reason for the death penalty.

 

[LumbergTech]

deleted

 

[LumbergTech]

Originally posted by: manowar821

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Convicted spy.

Treason carries the death penalty in the USA, too.

Treason is not anywhere NEAR a good enough reason for the death penalty.

I don't think he was trying to justify it so much as point out that the outrage is mostly pointless because the law is the same here.

 

[Kirby]

Originally posted by: manowar821

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Convicted spy.

Treason carries the death penalty in the USA, too.

Treason is not anywhere NEAR a good enough reason for the death penalty.

I disgree. Treason is the most deserving punishment of the death penalty.

As to the scientist, I'm not sure what anyone can/could do about it. The Chinese citizens need to deal with this themselves.

 

[StageLeft]

Originally posted by: nkgreen

Originally posted by: manowar821

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Convicted spy.

Treason carries the death penalty in the USA, too.

Treason is not anywhere NEAR a good enough reason for the death penalty.

I disgree. Treason is the most deserving punishment of the death penalty.

As to the scientist, I'm not sure what anyone can/could do about it. The Chinese citizens need to deal with this themselves.

Then by extension you hold the importance of country above all else, which I find depressing. If it was God's country, sure, but no country comes close.

 

[Kirby]

Originally posted by: Skoorb

Originally posted by: nkgreen

Originally posted by: manowar821

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Convicted spy.

Treason carries the death penalty in the USA, too.

Treason is not anywhere NEAR a good enough reason for the death penalty.

I disgree. Treason is the most deserving punishment of the death penalty.

As to the scientist, I'm not sure what anyone can/could do about it. The Chinese citizens need to deal with this themselves.

Then by extension you hold the importance of country above all else, which I find depressing. If it was God's country, sure, but no country comes close.

Then what do you think of the millions who sacrificed their lives for their country? How many lives would be lost for nuclear secrets?

 

[TallBill]

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Convicted spy.

Treason carries the death penalty in the USA, too.

Yup, and definitely needs to be.

 

[DaveSimmons]

there are indications that Wo did not face a fair trial: He was not represented by a lawyer, the trial was held behind closed doors, and he was forced to make a confession while in detention, which he later recanted

Before Gitmo we used to hold the moral high ground on this kind of behavior. Now not so much.

 

[Extelleron]

What do you expect from China? Not much more to say. I think it is shameful that we trade with a country like China and our economies our so connected. Unfortunately I doubt that will change anytime soon.

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Convicted spy.

Treason carries the death penalty in the USA, too.

:disgust: And if the U.S. executed a scientist based on inconclusive evidence, without a fair trial.......... I doubt you would be saying that.

 

[MotF Bane]

Originally posted by: nkgreen

Originally posted by: manowar821

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Convicted spy.

Treason carries the death penalty in the USA, too.

Treason is not anywhere NEAR a good enough reason for the death penalty.

I disgree. Treason is the most deserving punishment of the death penalty.

As to the scientist, I'm not sure what anyone can/could do about it. The Chinese citizens need to deal with this themselves.

I agree with you nkgreen.

 

[theeedude]

This news does not seem to mesh with this report.

 

[0marTheZealot]

Originally posted by: NoShangriLa

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Convicted spy.

Treason carries the death penalty in the USA, too.

China has executed a scientist accused of spying for Taiwan.

The family of Wo Weihan, 59, had appealed for clemency, saying that he was tortured into admitting that he was a spy

Wo Weihan, a case for Taipei [UPDATED

The reason why Taipei should follow Amnesty and Wo?s daughter, Ran Chen, in appealing to Beijing to extend the stay of execution is that aside from China executing more people annually than any other country (470 documented cases last year), there are indications that Wo did not face a fair trial: He was not represented by a lawyer, the trial was held behind closed doors, and he was forced to make a confession while in detention, which he later recanted.

Furthermore, the nature of the accusations ? even if they turned out to be true ? certainly should not carry the death sentence. Wo was found guilty (the indictment actually reads ?might?) of discussing the health of Chinese leaders, which under Chinese law is considered a ?state secret,? as well as passing on, or ?leaking,? unclassified publications available in library (subsequently classified) to a group with alleged ties to Taiwanese intelligence.

Looks like they took a page right out of the DoD's manual on how to prosecute "terrorists" and dialed the punishment to 11.

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: Extelleron
What do you expect from China? Not much more to say. I think it is shameful that we trade with a country like China and our economies our so connected. Unfortunately I doubt that will change anytime soon.

Originally posted by: jpeyton
Convicted spy.

Treason carries the death penalty in the USA, too.

:disgust: And if the U.S. executed a scientist based on inconclusive evidence, without a fair trial.......... I doubt you would be saying that.

you presume to know jpeyton which is laughable!

 

[Siddhartha]

I am against capital punishment.

BTW, didn't the US execute the Rosenbergs for conspiracy to commit espionage?

Does asking that question make me a "Chinese apologist"?

 

[Craig234]

Originally posted by: Siddhartha
I am against capital punishment.

+1

China has its 'conservatives' as we do who are too happy to kill.

 

[sunzt]

It's China. Deal with it.

What you going to do about it? Invade them?