Husband vanishes before China-US flight
May have been seized for his Falungong beliefs
A New York-based musician is appealing for help to find her husband who vanished as he boarded a flight from China to the United States amid fears he was seized for his Falungong beliefs.
Mei Xuan, who fled to the US from China in 2007, said she went on February 18 to Newark Liberty International Airport, flowers in hand, to welcome her husband Jiang Feng who was due on a flight from Shanghai.
But he never arrived and phone calls went unanswered. Ms Mei said she confirmed that the 42-year-old Jiang had checked in to the Continental Airlines flight and concluded that he disappeared between security and the boarding gate.
"I'm very, very worried for him," Ms Mei said on a recent visit to Washington, where she was seeking help from lawmakers.
"Because we both practice Falungong, we have experienced this before and know they can just take you away," she said. "I thought we could finally be together. We want to have a baby."
Ms Mei plays the erhu, a Chinese stringed instrument, in the Shen Yun ensemble, which incorporates Falungong themes. The troupe was recently in the spotlight when members said they were denied visas to perform in Hong Kong.
China outlawed Falungong - a spiritual movement loosely based on Buddhist, Taoist and Confucian philosophies - in 1999 following a silent mass gathering in Beijing by its members. China denounces the group as an "evil cult."
The New York-based Falun Dafa Information Centre, which supports Falungong's rights, said it had information that Jiang was taken to his native Anhui province where agents are trying to force him to renounce his beliefs.