Two Hong Kong delegates to the nation's top law-making body have vowed to help a mother-of-three fight for the release of her husband, who has been detained without charges on the mainland for 31 months.
National People's Congress (NPC) deputies Cheng Yiu-tong and Allen Lee Peng-fei met Chan Got Hong-hong in Beijing yesterday and officially received her petition.
They promised to refer Mrs Chan's letter to the NPC's Standing Committee and the Inner Mongolia People's Congress before the conclusion of the NPC meeting. 'We will attach a joint letter saying we are concerned about the case,' Mr Lee said.
Mr Cheng said: 'Any legal dispute should be resolved as soon as possible. There is no point detaining somebody in an attempt to get the money in a dispute back.'
On Wednesday, a panel discussion of the Guangdong delegation to the NPC was told the problem of detention without trial on the mainland was 'rather serious'.
'Some people are held for three or even five years,' said Wang Jun, a former deputy chairman of the Guangdong People's Congress.