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Political dissident who fled China by boat arrives in Canada, his friend says
CBS News • • general
Key Points:
- Dong Guangping, a Chinese political dissident who fled to South Korea last month in a dinghy, has arrived in Canada, according to a friend on social media.
- Dong, a former Chinese police officer and activist, has faced multiple imprisonments for his activism, including a three-year sentence in 2001 and detention after participating in a Tiananmen Square memorial in 2014.
- He has made several attempts to escape China, including fleeing to Thailand and Vietnam where he was deported back, and trying to swim to Taiwan, before being detained by South Korea’s coast guard in May.
- Dong hopes to reunite in Canada with his wife and daughters, who have already been resettled there, and was recently photographed enjoying a meal after arriving in Toronto.
- His friend Sheng Xue, a Chinese Canadian activist, praised Dong’s resilience and strength throughout his repeated and dangerous attempts to flee China.
