Chen Challenged China's Abortion Regime

The whole world now knows the name of Chen Guangcheng, the blind Chinese human-rights activist from Shandong province who briefly took protective shelter in the U.S. embassy — before being released on Wednesday under a deal struck by the American and Chinese governments. Here are the names of a few more Shandong residents who aren’t so well known, but deserve to be. Fang Zhongxia is a mother and peasant who, in March, 2005, was 7 months pregnant with another child. Local officials, outraged by this apparent flouting of China’s “one-child” policy, took her relatives hostage (including three minors, and a 70-year old woman) and forced Ms. Fang to drink prostaglandins, a substance that induces abortion by causing premature uterine contractions. For good measure, these same officials sterilized Ms. Fang. Only after this did they let her relatives go.