Grant the Australian Defectors Asylum in the United States

Many in America, Australia, and especially Communist China have been following the story of Chen Yonglin, the former political consul for the Communist regime now in fear for his life for his willingness to expose that regime's network of overseas spies. Chen has already contacted our consulate for help and safety. I ask you to grant Chen Yonglin, his fellow defector Hao Fengjun, and their families in Australia political asylum in the United States.

Chen and Hao have bravely revealed to Australia how Communist China keeps tabs on its exiles abroad, especially its exiled dissidents. To allow them to suffer even the smallest risk of forced return to Communist China is beneath our character as a nation. As we expend blood and treasure to preserve the human rights of Afghans and Iraqis, how can we not risk so much less by protecting Chen and Hao's rights?

The Epoch Times is an anti-Communist weekly newspaper circulated in the US,Canada, and Australia, targeted toward the Chinese community and those associated.

They have been reporting the resignations from the Communist party by Chinese that are occuring at an increasing rate lately.

In some areas, Communism is losing it's hold on it's largest victim, China. It will still be a long time before we see the demise of the Marxist scourge.

The rest.

Moreover, this issue goes well beyond Chen and Hao's own human rights and dignity. They are among the few who have intimate knowledge of how the Communists patrol overseas Chinese populations. As you well know, several American cities, including our nation's capital, have large ethnic Chinese communities, and as such, millions of fellow Americans are subject to the same surveillance, intimidation, and fear that Chen and Hao have revealed as the Communists' weapons to ensure overseas silence. Chen and Hao can help fight that far-flung network of Communist watchers here in the United States, and finally let millions of Chinese-Americans experience the full American dream.

However, Chen and Hao's value could go far beyond liberating Chinese-Americans from the long arm of Communist tyranny. They could also help break up the Communist networks in this country that have stolen nuclear secrets, compromised counterintelligence operations, and committed industrial and military espionage. If he were safely in the U.S., Chen and Hao could be invaluable assets in protecting America from espionage on several fronts.

For these reasons, I urge you to grant Chen Yonglin, Hao Fengjun, and their families in Australia asylum in the United States, not only to remove the danger to them, but to exploit what may be the best counter-espionage opportunity we have had since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Very Truly Yours,

D.J. McGuire: President and Co-founder: China e-Lobby

D.J. McGuire is President of the China e-Lobby, an anti-Communist group he co-founded in 2000, and the author of Dragon in the Dark: How and Why Communist China Helps Our Enemies in the War on Terror.

The Epoch Times has hit NYC in a really big way this month. As one who always picks up whatever the Falun Gong are handing out, I've made an effort to support them -- and explain to my idiot liberal friends that China means more than take-out.

What ticks me off, though, is how the FG protesters are totally invisible to the media. If you get a couple of ________ (fill in the blank ethnic group . . . say, those that have obnoxious parades) on a corner with a billboard, you're page 4 in the tabloids. Whereas the FG protesters maintain a consistent presence in main areas & present a dignified, quiet, ACCURATE -- yet gory -- portrayal of what happens to Chinese citizens who just want, essentially, do yoga in parks and I have never seen a story about them. Just goes to show you where big business stands on the question of China vs. Liberty.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.