Just wonderful -- our pesident helps this "human rights hero" out of a Chinese jail -- and she "stabs" us in the back by sending "high tech" items (that may be used in weapon systems) to China and by income tax evasion!
Read this article and see how she and her husband "appreciated" the blessing of living in the USA.
Here's the link to the story:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/11/26/national/main585780.shtml
Human Rights Hero Spied For China
WASHINGTON, Nov. 26, 2003
One of several academics jailed in China in recent years, Gao's detention became a cause célèbre for politicians and human rights activists.
(CBS/AP) A human rights activist whom the U.S. government helped free from a Chinese prison in 2001 pleaded guilty Wednesday to illegally sending $1.5 million worth of high-tech items to China.
Gao Zhan entered the plea in federal court in Alexandria, Va., to one count of unlawful export and another count of tax evasion. Her husband, Xue Donghua, also pleaded guilty to tax evasion.
Gao, a permanent U.S. resident alien, was arrested by Chinese authorities in February 2001 and convicted of spying for Taiwan. She was released after five months in jail under intense pressure from the U.S. government and worked until spring 2002 as a researcher at American University here.
Gao had been hailed as a human rights hero during her detention, CBS News Correspondent Jim Stewart reports. President Bush and Secretary of State Colin Powell appealed personally for her release, and she was freed in July 2001 as a "good will" gesture" shortly before a visit to China by Powell.
According to federal prosecutors, from August 1998 through 2001 Gao ran Technology Business Services, a business specializing in exports of technology to China. The exports were made to Chinese companies tied to "institutes" which perform research and development for the Chinese government, including the Chinese military.
Among the items sent to China were microprocessors that can be used in digital flight control and weapons systems, including identification of targets. Although these microprocessors also have commercial uses, they cannot be exported without permission of the U.S. government.
Gao was paid $1.5 million by China for the microprocessors and other items, but prosecutors say she and her husband did not report most of the income on their tax returns.
Gao faces a maximum of 37 months in prison, with her husband facing up to a year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000.
Prosecutors say they will ask for a reduced sentence because Gao has been working with the U.S. government to identify people in the Chinese government who are seeking to import sensitive American goods.
U.S. officials say they are not sure if Gao's arrest in China — where she was sentenced to ten years in prison for selling secrets to Taiwan, then given medical parole — was a ruse.
One of several academics jailed in China in recent years, Gao's detention became a cause célèbre for politicians and human rights activists.
In June 2001 the House of Representatives passed a resolution condemning China for depriving Gao of her "basic human rights" and barring her from seeing her husband, child or lawyer.
"In the matter of an instant, this happy young family was torn apart by the regime in Beijing," Virginia Congressman Frank Wolf said at the time.
Saman Zia-Zarifi, Academic Freedom Director for Human Rights Watch, said Gao's Chinese trial "was a miscarriage of justice from the beginning."
After Gao's release, Mr. Bush said he had "spoke directly to (then Chinese President) Jiang Zemin on this very subject, about the humane treatment of U.S. citizens and/or legal residents. Perhaps China is beginning to realize that as she begins to deal with Western nations, she's going to have to make better decisions on human rights."
A month after her release, Gao told Voice of America: "I have nightmares almost every day." She described lengthy, intense interrogation sessions.
Gao suggested the Chinese government's interest in her was related to work with U.S.-based political scientists specializing in Taiwan.
Gao has been in the United States since 1989 and received her Ph. D. from Syracuse University in 1997.
©MMIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
******
Just my 2 cents...
Read this article and see how she and her husband "appreciated" the blessing of living in the USA.
Here's the link to the story:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/11/26/national/main585780.shtml
Human Rights Hero Spied For China
WASHINGTON, Nov. 26, 2003
One of several academics jailed in China in recent years, Gao's detention became a cause célèbre for politicians and human rights activists.
(CBS/AP) A human rights activist whom the U.S. government helped free from a Chinese prison in 2001 pleaded guilty Wednesday to illegally sending $1.5 million worth of high-tech items to China.
Gao Zhan entered the plea in federal court in Alexandria, Va., to one count of unlawful export and another count of tax evasion. Her husband, Xue Donghua, also pleaded guilty to tax evasion.
Gao, a permanent U.S. resident alien, was arrested by Chinese authorities in February 2001 and convicted of spying for Taiwan. She was released after five months in jail under intense pressure from the U.S. government and worked until spring 2002 as a researcher at American University here.
Gao had been hailed as a human rights hero during her detention, CBS News Correspondent Jim Stewart reports. President Bush and Secretary of State Colin Powell appealed personally for her release, and she was freed in July 2001 as a "good will" gesture" shortly before a visit to China by Powell.
According to federal prosecutors, from August 1998 through 2001 Gao ran Technology Business Services, a business specializing in exports of technology to China. The exports were made to Chinese companies tied to "institutes" which perform research and development for the Chinese government, including the Chinese military.
Among the items sent to China were microprocessors that can be used in digital flight control and weapons systems, including identification of targets. Although these microprocessors also have commercial uses, they cannot be exported without permission of the U.S. government.
Gao was paid $1.5 million by China for the microprocessors and other items, but prosecutors say she and her husband did not report most of the income on their tax returns.
Gao faces a maximum of 37 months in prison, with her husband facing up to a year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000.
Prosecutors say they will ask for a reduced sentence because Gao has been working with the U.S. government to identify people in the Chinese government who are seeking to import sensitive American goods.
U.S. officials say they are not sure if Gao's arrest in China — where she was sentenced to ten years in prison for selling secrets to Taiwan, then given medical parole — was a ruse.
One of several academics jailed in China in recent years, Gao's detention became a cause célèbre for politicians and human rights activists.
In June 2001 the House of Representatives passed a resolution condemning China for depriving Gao of her "basic human rights" and barring her from seeing her husband, child or lawyer.
"In the matter of an instant, this happy young family was torn apart by the regime in Beijing," Virginia Congressman Frank Wolf said at the time.
Saman Zia-Zarifi, Academic Freedom Director for Human Rights Watch, said Gao's Chinese trial "was a miscarriage of justice from the beginning."
After Gao's release, Mr. Bush said he had "spoke directly to (then Chinese President) Jiang Zemin on this very subject, about the humane treatment of U.S. citizens and/or legal residents. Perhaps China is beginning to realize that as she begins to deal with Western nations, she's going to have to make better decisions on human rights."
A month after her release, Gao told Voice of America: "I have nightmares almost every day." She described lengthy, intense interrogation sessions.
Gao suggested the Chinese government's interest in her was related to work with U.S.-based political scientists specializing in Taiwan.
Gao has been in the United States since 1989 and received her Ph. D. from Syracuse University in 1997.
©MMIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
******
Just my 2 cents...
