Ai Weiwei, the dissident artist who a day earlier had criticized Mr. Mo for cooperating with the authorities and refusing to stand up for persecuted writers, said he was heartened by the remarks. Murong Xuecun, a prominent writer who frequently jousts with the censors, said Mr. Mo probably felt protected by his newly acquired Nobel mantle. “Maybe all the glory has made him more courageous and more outspoken,” he said in an interview.

[Peter Terpstra]

Chinese Nobel Winner Calls for Dissident’s Release
By ANDREW JACOBS

BEIJING — Mo Yan, the new Nobel laureate who strenuously avoided antagonizing the Communist Party during much of
his literary career, stepped into a political minefield on Friday by calling for the release of Liu Xiaobo, the imprisoned
writer and fellow Nobel winner who is serving an 11-year sentence for subversion.

“I hope he can achieve his freedom as soon as possible,” Mr. Mo, 57, told reporters during a news conference held a
day after he won the 2012 prize for literature. He spoke not far from his family’s home in rural Shandong Province, the
setting for many of his epic novels.

Even if Mr. Mo’s remarks were spare and decidedly nonconfrontational — he went on to suggest he was not an admirer
of Mr. Liu’s pro-democracy essays — they are nonetheless likely to infuriate China’s leadership, which has been exulting
in the Swedish Academy’s decision to give China its first Nobel in literature.

Beijing considers Mr. Liu a criminal, and the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to him in 2010 has long been seen here as an
effort to meddle in China’s internal affairs.

Despite the throng of Chinese reporters attending the news conference, Mr. Mo’s comments did not appear in the
state-run news media. But they quickly spread via Twitter, electrifying Chinese literati, many of whom had been critical
of his close relationship to the Communist Party, especially Mr. Mo’s role as vice chairman of the government-run
Chinese Writers’ Association.

Ai Weiwei, the dissident artist who a day earlier had criticized Mr. Mo for cooperating with the authorities and refusing
to stand up for persecuted writers, said he was heartened by the remarks. Murong Xuecun, a prominent writer who
frequently jousts with the censors, said Mr. Mo probably felt protected by his newly acquired Nobel mantle. “Maybe all
the glory has made him more courageous and more outspoken,” he said in an interview.

Mr. Mo’s comments are not expected to derail his celebrity status, at least in the eyes of the government. On
Thursday, Li Changchun, the nation’s propaganda chief, issued a congratulatory letter heralding the prize as a sign that
China’s cultural influence was finally catching up to its size and economic heft. “Thus Chinese writers can contribute
more to the prosperity and development of Chinese culture, as well as the progress of human civilization,” Mr. Li
wrote, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

On Friday, Mr. Mo’s face was splashed across the front pages of most Chinese newspapers. By morning, bookstores
throughout the capital had already set up special display sections for his works. By the evening, many stores, as well as
commerce Web sites like Amazon, were already out of stock.

The Global Times, a party-owned tabloid, made a point of describing Mr. Mo as a “mainstream” writer — as opposed to
figures like Mr. Liu who are often ostracized at home but lionized abroad. “This suggests that the West doesn’t only
embrace individuals that are against the Chinese system,” it wrote in a commentary. “No matter what inspired the
award this time, it is a welcome decision. We hope such appreciation of Chinese mainstream ideas can extend
further.”

Even if Mr. Mo has strenuously avoided taking a stand on censorship or other politically delicate matters, those who
follow his work say branding him as “mainstream” may be inaccurate. Eric Abrahamsen, a literary translator and
publishing consultant in Beijing, noted that many of his richly detailed stories are subversive in their depiction of
Chinese officialdom, even if couched in the magical realism that has become his trademark style.

“He doesn’t keep bashing himself against the wall by writing about forbidden topics, but most of what he has written
is critical of party politics,” Mr. Abrahamsen said. “His work is essentially a chronicle of how the Communist Party has
messed up China.”

Ran Yunfei, a sharp-tongued writer persecuted for his pro-democracy views, said he was heartened by Mr. Mo’s
comments but doubted that he would become a crusader for human rights and free expression. “He has become very
skilled at walking on a tightrope,” Mr. Ran wrote in a microblog post. “Now that he has become a household name with
the government’s backing, it’s only going to become harder for him to be a real critic of the government.”

Edward Wong contributed reporting. Mia Li contributed research.

NY Times.

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