Washington, D.C. July 11, 2010– The July 13 concert in New York’s Central Park, celebrating the Shanghai World Expo, will also celebrate the first 100 days of the Sparrow Initiative, a protest action by Chinese citizens forcibly evicted from their homes on the property now hosting the Shanghai Expo.
Sparrow Initiative demonstrations have been taking place in Shanghai and Beijing, as well as New York. Sparrow Initiative supporters will be handing out Expo fact sheets to concert goers between 7-8pm at Merchant’s Gate, Central Park (59th Street and 8th Ave.). The effort is organized by Initiatives for China, a Boston-based organization dedicated to facilitating a peaceful transition to democracy in China.
“We want the concert attendees to enjoy the concert. At the same time we want them to realize they are also celebrating the actions of a government that rules with a disdain for its citizens and a disregard for the rule of law,” said Dr. Yang Jianli, Harvard Fellow and President of Initiatives for China. “It is ironically sad that New York will host such a beautiful concert extolling an International Expo, with the theme of ‘Better City, Better Life’, whose very existence began by forcibly evicting 18,000 families and destroying 270 factories that employed 10,00 workers without a hint of due process,” Yang added.
Coinciding with the concert, Sparrow Initiative supporters will be also be demonstrating in Beijing and in Los Angeles.
Sparrow Initiative members include Hu Yan, a young mother whose five-year struggle with the Chinese government brought her to New York on April 30, where she has been protesting her forced eviction outside UN headquarters for past 100 days. Her letters to the UN Secretary General and to the Director of UN-HABITAT have gone unanswered. Another Sparrow Initiative member is Xu Xiaoqi, daughter of a founding general of the Chinese Communist Party, General Xu ZhiZhong. Ms. Xu has been protesting in Beijing.
Another Sparrow Initiative supporter is Yang Haihan, a naturalized U.S. citizen. Yang’s family business and property were appropriated by developers in collusion with government officials. He is currently seeking support from Congressman Adam Schiff of California. Yang will be demonstrating at the consulate in Los Angeles.
Contact Information:
Yang Jianli, 857-472-9039
Jim Geheran, 202-290-1423
jgeheran@initiativesforchina.org
Hu Yan (646-522-8122) (Chinese only)
Chen Xuxing (347-654-9336)
Xu Xiaoqi (013552839707)
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Complete Text of Hu Yan’s Letter to the UN Secretary General