Key facts
- The wife of a US scholar imprisoned in China has asked President Donald Trump to raise his case with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
- U Min Zin, director of a think tank focused on Myanmar, was arrested on June 3 in Kunming, China.
- Sylvia Zin, wife of U Min Zin, testified to Congress on Wednesday.
- US seismologist Chen Youlin has also been held in prison in China for two years.
- The US State Department has designated U Min Zin and Chen Youlin as 'wrongfully detained' in China.
The wife of a US scholar imprisoned in China on charges of spying and endangering national security has appealed to President Donald Trump to secure his release during his upcoming meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. U Min Zin, director of the Myanmar Institute for Strategic and Policy Studies (ISP-Myanmar), was arrested on June 3 after traveling to Kunming for an academic conference. His wife, Sylvia Zin, testified before the House Foreign Affairs Committee East Asia and Pacific Subcommittee on Wednesday, expressing hope that Trump would raise her husband's case with Xi Jinping during the state visit to Washington DC.
Zin stated her belief that Trump, citing his past success in bringing detained Americans home, would be able to secure the swift release of her husband and other wrongfully detained citizens, including US seismologist Chen Youlin, who has been held in China for two years. Congresswoman Young Kim, chairwoman of the subcommittee, warned Americans about the risk of being taken hostage by Beijing for diplomatic leverage. The US State Department has designated both U Min Zin and Chen Youlin as 'wrongfully detained,' a status that allows for increased US government resources to be allocated to their cases.
Sylvia Zin shared that she has not been able to speak to her husband in jail and anxiously awaits consular visits to confirm he is alive. She also mentioned that U Min Zin was subjected to up to six hours of interrogation daily upon his initial imprisonment. The son of Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai also appeared before the committee to advocate for his father's release. A senior White House official stated that resolving the wrongful detentions of US citizens is a top priority for the President.