Friends of China Nobel laureate risk safety to show support

In this image taken from video, a man walks near the First Hospital of China Medical University where imprisoned Chinese Nobel Peace Prize laureate and dissident Liu Xiaobo is believed to have been transferred to after being diagnosed with late-stage liver cancer in Shenyang in northeastern China's Liaoning province, Thursday, July 13, 2017. Liu's condition is now life threatening with multiple organ failure, and his family has opted against inserting a breathing tube needed to keep him alive, the hospital treating him said on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan) In this image taken from video, a man walks near the First Hospital of China Medical University where imprisoned Chinese Nobel Peace Prize laureate and dissident Liu Xiaobo is believed to have been transferred to after being diagnosed with late-stage liver cancer in Shenyang in northeastern China's Liaoning province, Thursday, July 13, 2017. Liu's condition is now life threatening with multiple organ failure, and his family has opted against inserting a breathing tube needed to keep him alive, the hospital treating him said on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

By Associated Press July 13, 2017 1 min read

SHENYANG, China (AP) – Friends of China’s ailing and imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo have made their way to his hospital at the risk of being detained by the authorities, saying they want to show their support in what could be his final moments.

Documentary filmmaker Zeng Jinyan told The Associated Press on Thursday that she and a fellow supporter drove eight hours from Beijing to the northeastern city of Shenyang where the critically ill political prisoner is being treated at a hospital under close guard.

Zeng said she drove more than 200 kilometers (120 miles) to “get closer to Xiaobo and (his wife) Liu Xia, to be with him as he goes through this rough time.”

The hospital treating Liu for advanced liver cancer said Wednesday his condition is life-threatening.