Man’s Brother Wins Fight to Leave China to Give Bone Marrow
Ending a hard-fought political campaign to save a Monterey Park man’s life, the man’s brother is scheduled to arrive in Los Angeles this afternoon from China..
Ravaged by leukemia, Zhaoqi Lao, 36, was told he would have only a few months to live if he did not receive a bone marrow transplant from the one suitable donor doctors could find: Lao’s brother, Zhaohua Lao, 42, who lives in China.
U.S. consular officials in China had refused to grant Zhaohua Lao a temporary non-immigrant visa four times since November, fearing that the brother intends to immigrate, said a spokeswoman from county Supervisor MikeAntonovich’s office.
After activists sent letters to the White House, Los Angeles Immigration and Naturalization Services officials asked Zhaoqi Lao to fill out a waiver form to clear the way for his brother’s arrival. Antonovich, Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Rep. Matthew G. Martinez (D-Monterey Park) joined the plea.
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