WORLD IN BRIEF : CHINA : Dissident Beaten by Prison Guards

A dissident imprisoned for drafting a “Peace Charter” and opposing Beijing’s bid to host the 2000 Olympic Games has been savagely beaten by his guards, according to his wife. Li Jinfang, wife of Qin Yongmin, asked the National People’s Congress to intervene to allow her husband to undergo medical treatment, investigate the incident and punish the guilty. She said prison guards in Wuhan twice beat Qin until he became unconscious because he was slow to act on their orders. He was kicked in his genitals, she said, adding she feared he may have suffered permanent injury.