China's Wen visits Britain amid release of rights activist

LONDON — Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao toured Britain on Sunday and sought to strengthen trade links, as Bejing freed dissident activist Hu Jia in a move seen as defusing tensions over human rights.Wen arrived in the central English city of Birmingham on Saturday on the second leg of an European mini-tour, while news emerged that Hu, one of China's most prominent prisoners of conscience, was to be released.Hu, 37, was jailed on subversion charges in April 2008 after angering the ruling Communist Party through years of bold campaigning for civil rights, the environment and AIDS sufferers. His release followed that of outspoken Chinese artist Ai Weiwei last week.On his first full day in Britain on Sunday, Wen launched the first new MG car to be made in 15 years, the MG6 model, hailing it as a potent symbol of friendship between London and Beijing.The new MG6 will be assembled at the MG car plant in Longbridge, Birmingham, which is now owned by Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp (SAIC), China's largest automaker."The successful cooperation of the production of the MG6 and other MG vehicles is a symbol of the friendship between China and the UK," said Wen, speaking at Longbridge."The model can be summed up as designed in the UK, manufactured in China and assembled in the UK, thereby making the most of China's capital and markets, as well as the UK's technology and managerial expertise."Outside the factory gates, several dozen protesters were gathered to demonstrate against the visit, including supporters of the Falungong spiritual movement, banned in China, and Free Tibet campaigners."Cameron and Wen. Human rights before trade," read the placards of some of the protesters.The British government's trade minister Stephen Green also attended the MG6 launch and described SAIC as a "pioneer for Chinese investors in the UK".The Chinese premier later held separate meetings with former British leaders Gordon Brown and Tony Blair and vowed that support to Britain and Europe would be "in concrete actions," according to Chi

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