Speaking out

A father jailed after trying to organize fellow parents of children sickened in China's 2008 melamine milk scandal has spoken out, charging that authorities force-fed him Chinese milk powder (the very thing that made his son ill) while he was on a hunger strike.

In dramatic allegations posted on Twitter and in a video posted online, Zhao Lianhai said the arrest of artist Ai Weiwei and others prompted him to speak out against abuses of power in China. After two nights of tweeting and posting the video, Zhao then said he was finished, apparently told by authorities to keep silent or return to prison.

"We do not wish to see China ultimately become what Libya is today, descending into such fierce conflict," said Zhao, according to a full translation of the transcript by the China Media Project in Hong Kong. "We hope rather that China can, in the face of these important tensions today, in the face of these conflicts, see from the authorities greater sincerity of mind, greater consideration for the country, for the Chinese people, for the future of the country, and for the public."