U.S. envoy visits inmate

By KARL SCHOENBERGER
MERCURY NEWS
June 11, 2005

The U.S. ambassador to China visited Jude Shao in his Shanghai prison Friday and said he hoped Chinese officials would soon release the San Francisco businessman on medical parole.

The visit by Ambassador Clark Randt marks the strongest statement of U.S. government support for Shao, a Stanford MBA who is serving a 16-year sentence for tax fraud in a case that is tainted by alleged human rights violations.

Randt said he was ``deeply concerned about Mr. Shao's medical condition,'' according to the Reuters news service. ``I am very hopeful that the Chinese government will consider Mr. Shao for prompt medical parole.''

Shao, a naturalized U.S. citizen who grew up in Shanghai, was arrested in 1998 after tax authorities raided the Shanghai branch of his company, China Business Ventures. Shao has said that he was framed by a local business partner and that he was prevented from introducing exculpatory evidence during his trial. His appeals to higher courts have been denied.

Shao's case was elevated to the highest level of concern during U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's recent visit to Beijing, said John Kamm, a San Francisco human rights advocate who helps Chinese prisoners.

``This is the first time Randt has been in a Chinese prison,'' Kamm said. ``This is obviously a move in the right direction. It's going to be a lot easier for Beijing to release this guy than a political prisoner to help ease some of the friction in the U.S.-Chinese relationship.''

Kamm pointed out that the legal troubles encountered by another Chinese-American in China last year, David Ji, chairman of the California-based electronics supplier Apex Digital, also have raised concerns in the State Department and helped put pressure on Chinese authorities about Shao's case.

Contact Karl Schoenberger at kschoenberger@mercurynews.com or (415) 477-2500.