Ai Weiwei

14 Jan 2011 - Most of the time I like to keep the tone of message of this blog light, but sometimes there is a need to raise more serious issues. And as I care a great deal for China and the Chinese people these serious often have to do with the Middle Kingdom. BBC reports that demolition workers have torn down the Shanghai studio of Ai Weiwei - a move he says is linked to his pilitical activism. Mr Ai said that it only took a day for the workers to flatten everything. He initially had permission to build the studio, but later the permission was revoked under claims that he had failed to follow planning procedures. Mr Ai called the demolition order "ridiculous". Ai Weiwei is one of China's most famous contemporary artists, and he was involved in creating the Olympic "Bird's Nest" stadium in his hometown Beijing. He has been an outspoken critic of China's leaders and the human rights situation in the country.