An
Open Letter to the City of Pasadena's Sister Cities Committee
April 5, 2009
To All Members of Pasadena's Sister Cities Committee:
When
the
City of
Pasadena agreed to join the Sister Cities program, it was to form partnerships
that
allow our communities to creatively learn,
work, and solve problems through cultural, educational, municipal,
business,
professional, and technical exchanges and projects.
One
of
the City of
Pasadena’s Sister Cities partnership is with Xicheng
District
of
Beijing. It is time for the Pasadena Sister Cities Committee to act
as a good sister to Xicheng District and engage in a dialogue of real
communications and ask Governor Zhang Yu of Xicheng District of Beijing
to help
promote human rights in China for his own people. We can no longer
turn a
blind eye to the women, men and families in China who beg for our
assistance.
California
has
a rich
history in defending basic human rights. The grass roots efforts that
the
Pasadena Sister Cities Committee may be able to undertake can help
restore the
sense of dignity for many common people in China who seek the freedoms
that we
often take for granted.
Pasadena’s
Sister
Cities
Committee can send a message to all cities throughout the United
States
that have sister-city relationships with China’s cities : the
people-to-people
relations will not exclude our compassion for those who suffer
injustice.
This is a wonderful opportunity that we urge you to accept.
We
are
appealing to
the Pasadena Sister Cities Committee members to send a message to
Beijing
via Mr. Zhang Yu, Governor of Xicheng District of Beijing, to ask for
the
release of Liu Xiaobo. Liu Xiabo was detained since December 10, 2008
on
the 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Mr.
Liu
is one of the
original signers of Charter 08, a document which re-iterated many of
the
rights set forth by the UN Declaration as well as guaranteed by the
Constitution of the Peoples Republic of China. In fact, Article 35 of
the
PRC Constitution guarantees the people in China the right of freedom of
speech.
We
are
appealing to
the Pasadena Sister City Committee members to send a message to Beijing
via Mr.
Zhang Yu, Governor of Xicheng District of Beijing to ask for the
release of other
prisoners of conscience: Huang Qi (human rights activist), Sun Lin
(journalist), Qi Chonghuai (journalist), Hu Jia (environmentalist and
AIDS
activist), Yang Chunlin (land rights activist for peasants), Chen
Guangcheng
(blind activist against forced abortion and forced sterilization for
women) and
Shi Tao (journalist).
We
must
take our
responsibilities seriously. We must let the officials from Beijing
know
that common people in the United States do care about the common people
in
China. With the world rapidly changing, the Pasadena Sister Cities
Committee would be on the right side of history by taking this one
small but
bold step of expressing concern for those in China who are merely
exercising
their right to freedom of speech.
I applaud Google for its brave stand on ...