China deported Swedish NGO worker

China has released a Swedish man held earlier this month for suspected acts detrimental to national security.

A Swedish human rights activist has been released and deported from China after he was detained for supporting local Chinese rights lawyers with his organization.

Peter Jesper Dahlin, who was detained January 3, was shown on state television January 19 admitting to illegal activities that hurt the Chinese government.

He vanished while on holiday from Hong Kong in Thailand in October past year. A Swedish diplomat says it’s comforting to know that Dahlin can finally reunite with his family, but Hong Kong-Swedish bookseller Gui Min-hai’s case is still disturbing.

The Chinese foreign ministry and Swedish embassy in Beijing confirmed Peter Dahlin, 35, had been released from detention and expelled from the country on Monday (Jan. 25) evening.

It was not immediately clear why Mr Dahlin was released or if he would be immediately leaving China.

Wallström said she remained “greatly concerned” about Gui. “I am very anxious about what their fate will be”.

Mr Dahlin’s release follows condemnation of his detention from the European Union, including a sharply worded statement from Germany.

The official Xinhua news agency said Mr Dahlin had been planted by “Western anti-China forces” to gather negative information about China and bolter opposition to the Communist Party.

“The authorities made their point, spreading intimidation and fear throughout both the domestic and foreign legal and NGO worlds”, Cohen wrote on his personal blog on Tuesday.

He said similar approaches were taken in the case of prominent rights lawyer Pu Zhiqiang and artist Ai Weiwei, but that less well-known activists are unlikely to get the same treatment.

It offers support to uncertified attorneys who offers direct help to disadvantaged groups and people that have experienced rights infringements, and provide legal aid in rural areas.

Gui Minhai, a Hong Kong-based publisher, disappeared previous year from Thailand before resurfacing on Chinese state television, stating he had voluntarily surrendered to authorities due to a decade-old offence.