For the Martyrs

Protesters in Hong Kong cry out with fists raised
and hearts outstretched for Liu Xiaobo's freedom outside
China's liaison office. Kin Cheung/AP

The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo Friday, despite a stiff warning from the Chinese government. Xiaobo is currently serving his first of an eleven year prison term for "inciting subversion of state power" after participating in the authoring of Charter 08, a manifesto calling for furthering of human rights in China.

Since Friday's announcement, the Chinese government has heavily censored any news concerning the prize, even blacking out CNN and BBC programming. CNN also reports blogs and internet search engines in the country are being tightly controlled. Xiaobo's wife, Liu Xia, has also announced on Twitter.com that she has been under house arrest after visiting her husband in prison following the pronouncement.

These recent acts by the Chinese government have met considerable global hostility, including from last year's laureate, President Barack Obama.

"This award reminds us that political reform has not kept pace, and that the basic human rights of every man, woman and child must be respected," Obama said. "We call on the Chinese government to release Liu as soon as possible."

Mark Frazier, Associate Director of OU's Institute for U.S. - China Issues, says the awarding of the prize has "put a great deal more pressure," on China, but does not foresee a release of Xiaobo in the near future. Dr. Miriam Gross, an assistant Chinese history professor at OU, agrees, saying the Chinese government won't let Xiaobo go for fear of looking weak. "They [Chinese government] are very afraid ...  "They saw the USSR fall like a house of cards," she said.

While the situation looks bleak, Xia and Xiaobo have acknowledged imprisonment as necessary for progression of liberty, with Xia even posting that Xiaobo began to cry upon hearing of his prize before saying "This is for the martyrs of Tiananmen Square."

Thousands have began following Xia's Twitter account since Friday.