EU parliament calls on China to release dissident Liu Xiaobo

(STRASBOURG) - The European parliament called on Thursday for the immediate release of prominent jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo, accusing Beijing of judicial harassment.

The parliament expressed solidarity withe Liu's peaceful actions and called for his "immediate and unconditional release" while condemning "the judicial harassment of which he was a victim."

Liu was jailed for 11 years on Christmas Day after he helped to write Charter 08, a bold manifesto calling for political change and democracy in China.

The MEPs also took aim at EU policy on China, accusing Europe of putting money before rights.

The parliamentary resolution said that the massive two-way trade and economic relations involved "have overshadowed the questions of democratic reforms, respect for human rights and the rule of law."

The European Union is China's biggest trading partner and investor.

Liu's incarceration has already been criticised by human rights groups and other Western powers.

The EU presidency in December condemned the Beijing court's decision, saying it raised concerns about freedom of speech and the right to a fair trial in China.

The EU parliamentary resolution adopted Thursday said Beijing authorities had "increased their surveillance, harassment and imprisonment of activists in order to prevent them from raising human rights concerns," in the run up to last October's 60th anniversary of communist China.

"China's human rights record remains a matter of serious concern," the lawmakers stressed.

The EU deputies also suggested China's poor human rights record might have wider diplomatic ramifications.

"The EU-China human rights dialogue established in 2000 has achieved negligible results," the elected parliament insisted, saying that was "the consequence of an uncoordinated and ineffective EU common foreign policy on China."

It called for Liu Xiaobo's case to be raised at the next EU-China summit.