Ros-Lehtinen warns Chen saga might not be over

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairwoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) warned on Friday that the saga of Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng and his struggle to leave China might not be over simply because China said it will allow him to apply for permission to study in the United States.

Instead, Ros-Lehtinen said, the Obama administration must press China to follow through on its apparent promise to allow Chen to leave the country.

"While China has reportedly agreed to let Chen leave, U.S. officials must not assume that Beijing will actually allow this to happen," she said Friday. "Only when Chen arrives on American soil and is granted political asylum will we know that this issue is resolved and his freedom and safety are assured."

Ros-Lehtinen echoed comments from other Republicans in criticizing the decision of U.S. officials to allow Chen to leave the U.S. Embassy, after which he was met by Chinese police officers. Chen fled to the embassy after escaping house arrest, but then went to a hospital to seek treatment for injuries.

"U.S. officials made a mistake by escorting Chen away from the safety of the U.S. Embassy and into an uncertain fate," she said. "To avoid another harmful error, the State Department must press China to carry out its commitments. We cannot assume that this saga has been resolved."

Another Foreign Affairs Committee member, Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.), held a hearing on Chen on Thursday, and said he was trying to arrange another next week to hear from administration officials.

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