Gao Zhisheng's wife 'beaten'

Update: While Chinese Lawyer Gao Zhisheng, also known as the Nelson Mandela of China, rots in jail for defending dissidents, the Chinese police commit more acts of indecency toward his family...beating his wife and (Update) daughter.

AP: BEIJING: The wife of an outspoken Chinese lawyer arrested on subversion charges was beaten on Friday by police, who bloodied her mouth and ripped her clothes in the scuffle, a friend said.

Geng He, the wife of Gao Zhisheng, has been under constant police surveillance since August, when her husband was detained after he started a hunger strike, said Hu Jia, a prominent campaigner on AIDS who is a close friend of the couple.

Surveillance and intimidation is common for dissidents and their family members.

According to Geng, she was out shopping in Beijing when she told three plainclothes officers who were following her to keep their distance, Hu said.

The discussion escalated and two of the male officers started beating her while the third, a woman, stood by and watched, he said.

The Public Security Bureau in Beijing did not immediately respond to a faxed request for confirmation of Geng's account.

Her husband, Gao, has represented clients who say their land has been seized by corrupt officials, followers of the banned Falun Gong sect and members of China's underground churches.