Romney: U.S. should protect Chinese dissident
(CNN) - Mitt Romney said he hopes the United States government is aiding Chen Guangcheng, a popular Chinese dissident now believed to be hiding in the U.S. Embassy in Beijing after fleeing house arrest in eastern China.
"My concern at this moment is for the safety of Chen Guangcheng and his family," Romney said in a statement released by his campaign on Sunday. "My hope is that U.S. officials will take every measure to ensure that Chen and his family members are protected from further persecution."
- Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker
U.S. government and Chinese officials, however, have declined to comment on Chen or confirm reports of his whereabouts. Meanwhile, analysts say questions over U.S. assistance could provoke tension in the country's delicate relationship with China.
A fellow human rights activist, Hu Jia, told CNN on Saturday that Chen had fled to the embassy in Beijing.
Chen, who is blind, gained fame in the late 1990s as a legal advocate for what he called victims of abusive practices, such as alleged forced abortions, by China's family-planning officials.
In 2006, he was sentenced to four years and three months in prison on charges that his supporters called preposterous. Released from prison in 2010, he has since been confined to his home along with his family.
Weighing in on Sunday, Romney said Chen's escape "points to the broader issue of human rights in China."
"Our country must play a strong role in urging reform in China and supporting those fighting for the freedoms we enjoy," Romney said.
Neither the White House nor President Barack Obama's re-election campaign has officially weighed in on the issue.
Romney has previously criticized China's alleged human rights abuses. On the campaign trail, he has said the country's sizable economy, paired with reports of infringements against freedom, should disqualify China from receiving U.S. assistance.
While the U.S. government does provide financial aid to the country, the money does not go directly to the Chinese government, Douglas Paal, a China expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told CNN's Jill Dougherty. He said it goes to local organizations that promote public health, law enforcement, environmental protection and democratic principles.
According to the U.S. State Department and USAID, the government appropriated $17.8 million in foreign aid for China in the fiscal year 2011.
But Romney said that money could be used elsewhere.
"I would stop sending foreign aid to countries that can take care of themselves," Romney said at a campaign event in November.
Also see:
2012 race makes fodder for Obama, Kimmel
Gingrich to quit presidential race Wednesday
Romney to appear with possible VP pick Ayotte in New Hampshire
McCain: Obama campaign video invoking bin Laden is 'pathetic'
Wow -how profound Romney. The rest of us weren't sure what to do with a man seeking aslyum from a communist nation who had held im in jail for years. Romney- the non foreign policy clue person. This is the same man who does not know the Soviet Union is gone and that Czechoslovokia has not been in existence since 1993! Too scary to let near any position of power. Let him choose one of his 5 houses to retire to and leave the leadership to real leaders like President Obama.
My hope is that Mitt Romney will be protected by the Gitmo staff for as long as it takes – preferably forever.
Wow, Romney actually takes a stand? That's new. He's usually hiding so not to make a mistake. He actually grew some balls this time.
On the other hand, does the US have anything to do with this "escape"? How is it that a blind guy is able to "escape" and makes it all the way into US custody without a lot of help and pre-planning? If the US is actively playing in China's home, they can and should expect some retribution.
Wow, Rmoney is just grasping at straws as his corpse of a campaign rots away.
Of course Romney wants to protect a Chinese dissident... he is one of Romney's "people." Romney would never support an American citizen who is a dissident. We are not his people.
mr. romney communist china wants to thank you and your friends for all the jobs
romney who has no foreign policy experience will undoutedly say any thing and probably something stupid about the whole thing. He needs to shut up and let the people in office take care of this. Its not the same as fireing someone.
The last thing our President needs is advice from a flip-flopping chickenhawk. Is there any nation Romney doesn't want to start a war with?
@ gg ...that was funny!