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Chinese Dissident Of The Day

Name: Liu Jie
Age: 55
Duration of incarceration: Started serving an 18-month term in a Re-Education Through Labor (RTL) facility in November 2007.
Crime: Ironically, her likely transgression was writing a public letter that urged the 17th CCP Congress to abolish the type of labor camps in which she's currently detained. (RTL's require no official charge). According to an Amnesty International report, inmates at Liu's prison are forced to work 14 hours a day to make crafts using chemical dye, known to cause headaches and skin problems.
Factoid:
Amnesty reports that Liu has been forced to sit upright for five days straight, a practice known as the "Tiger Bench."
More information: Amnesty International; www.amnesty.org

--Eric Zimmermann