A Chinese activist who spent more than three months camped inside Tokyo’s international airport as part of a protest flew home to China yesterday and was allowed into the country.
Feng Zhenghu (馮正虎), 55, arrived on a flight from Narita International Airport, where he camped from early November until last week to protest China’s refusal to let him enter the country.
His entrance into China comes after eight previous attempts since June where Chinese officials refused to allow him in. Feng has angered the local government by supporting student protests and accusing local authorities of wrongdoing.
A brother confirmed Feng that he had left the airport and was heading to his home in Shanghai.
Feng had said in a telephone interview from Tokyo that he was eager to spend the Lunar New Year with his family.
“I think this request is humble and reasonable. They should not be so nasty as to keep me from going home,” he said.
A dissident writer and human rights activist, Feng was jailed from 2000 to 2003. Detained for several weeks early last year, Feng says he has been harassed by authorities for supporting Shanghai residents seeking redress in property disputes with the local government.
Supporters gathered at the airport, many of them holding pieces of paper with Feng’s name on it.
“Feng is great. He hasn’t done anything wrong but help us fight for justice,” said one of the supporters, Zhou Minwen.
Feng left China in April and began his efforts to return home in June. His last attempt got him as far as Shanghai’s Pudong airport, where Chinese officials forced him to get back on a plane to Tokyo.
Despite holding a valid Chinese passport and a visa to enter Japan, Feng refused to pass immigration control as a protest against China’s government.
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