Liu, 31-year-old philosophy student at Sichuan Institute of Social Science, was invited to visit the U.S. by PEN International, a worldwide association of writers, as a member of its Chinese branch.
According to Liu, the school admitted that his expulsion was a political decision under the pressure of local state security department. The school authorities dismissed Liu with the excuse of “unauthorized absence” after they failed to persuade Liu to drop out of school.
Liu said he was granted a leave before he left China.
In a phone interview with Duowei.com, Liu said that he planned to appeal to higher authorities and even to bring the government to court. “I cannot understand why it is unreasonable for me, a graduate student in philosophy, to contact some political figures overseas,” Liu said. “I did not even publish any articles about the meetings after I came back.”
Liu also said he was concerned with his personal safety in China.
Liu has worked for several media agencies after college, and has frequently published political criticism. He was admitted to the Sichuan Institute of Social Sciences in 2007. In the same year he joined in the Independent Chinese PEN Center, which is regarded by the Chinese communist regime as a dissident organization.
Read the original Chinese article.
