- Pro-democracy protesters hang photos of jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo outside the Chinese government liaison office in Hong Kong on Sunday, Dec. 5, 2010. Protesters rallied in Hong Kong for the release of the jailed Nobel Peace Prize winner. (Getty Images / AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
December 05, 2010 (KATAKAMI / VOA) --- Hundreds of people marched in Hong Kong Sunday to demand that China release dissident Liu Xiaobo, who will be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize this week.
Nearly a hundred protesters, with a heavy police escort, marched to China's liaison office in support of Liu, who is the first Chinese recipient of the international honor.
The marchers also criticized China for putting Liu's wife, Liu Xia, under house arrest and barring other dissidents and rights campaigners from leaving the country for fear they might attend the awards ceremony in Oslo, Norway on Friday.
Liu is a co-author of "Charter 08," a petition calling for sweeping political reforms and freedoms. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison late last year.
China has denounced the decision to award Liu the peace prize and has pressured diplomats to boycott the award ceremony. (*)
