WHAT:  PICNIC FUNDRAISER FOR YU & YU
              An auction will be held to raise funds for Yu & Yu 
              YOUR SUPPORT IS NEEDED                     
            
WHEN:  SATURDAY, JUNE 19, 2010
               11:30 A.M. TO 2:00 P.M.
 
WHERE:  BARNES PARK, MONTEREY PARK
                 400 South McPherrin Ave., Monterey Park, Ca 91754
                     Barnes Park is next to Monterey Park City Hall.  It is bounded by S. Ramona, W. Newmark, S.McPherrin and Harding Ave
 
COST:  FREE
              DONATIONS WELCOME
              RSVP 310-539-0234, 626-227-4575
 
CONTACT:  ANN LAU 310-539-0234
                     JAMES ZHENG 626-227-4575
 
SPONSORS: VARIOUS HUMAN RIGHTS AND PRO-DEMOCRACY ORGANIZATIONS
 
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

Yu Dongyue, a former journalist and art critic, and his friend Yu Zhijian, a former teacher, will be visiting Los Angeles. 

In 1989, the two men, childhood friends, and a bus driver, Lu Decheng, hurled eggshells filled with paint at the 30ft (9m) portrait of Mao Zedong that gazes out from the Gate of Heavenly Peace. On May 23, 1989, the three men wanted to make a mark amid the student-led pro-democracy demonstrations in Tiananmen Square. They had travelled from their home province of Hunan in central China, the region where Mao was born.

They bought 30 eggs from a street food stall and filled the shells with paint. Mr Lu, who found asylum in Canada three years ago, has said that Yu Zhijian prevented people from walking through the gate under the portrait while he and Yu Dongyue hurled the eggs at it.

Yu Dongyue was convicted of sabotage and counter-revolutionary propaganda and sentenced to 20 years. Mr Lu received 16 years and Yu Zhijian a life sentence.

The latter two were released in 1998 but prison officials refused requests to free Yu Dongyue on medical parole, saying that he had never admitted doing anything wrong.

His sentence was, however, reduced by two years in 2000 and by another 15 months in 2003. He served the longest-known political sentence after the Tiananmen Square crackdown.

His treatment in prison, including two years in solitary confinement as well as subjection to electric shocks and beatings, took a toll on Yu Dongyue’s mental health.

Human rights and pro-democracy groups are planning a picnic fundraiser on Saturday, June 19, 2010