Military surgeon Jiang Yanyong has written an open letter to President Hu Jintao asking for an official apology for his mistreatment. Jiang gained international attention when he exposed an official cover-up of the SARS crisis in 2003. He later called on the government to reassess the official verdict on the June 4th massacre. From Reuters:
Jiang Yanyong wrote to President Hu Jintao demanding an apology for time he spent confined in an army “guesthouse” and months under house arrest, according to a copy of the letter seen by Reuters. He also asked Hu to lift a ban on overseas travel.
There are no new revelations in the letter, but it is likely to upset the government by raising the sensitive Tiananmen protests just months before the 20th anniversary of the crackdown on pro-democracy protesters, and as officials grapple with economic crisis.
The elderly doctor was hustled away from public view after he riled Communist leaders with an explosive letter in 2004 detailing his experience treating victims of the army assault on central Beijing on June 4, 1989, in which hundreds died.
