York University and an expert in Chinese law and human rights, said he believed the rulers of one-party China would be reluctant to release Liu Xia in case she became a figurehead of resistance. Cohen also argued that "not only should foreign governments condemn China for its violations of human rights that led to Liu Xiaobo's imprisonment and death, but they should also press the Chinese government to give Liu Xia, who has been put under severe illegal house arrest for the past seven years, the option to leave China. If she chooses to remain in China, the Chinese government should, in accordance with its international human rights obligations, immediately lift all the oppressive conditions that she has suffered". UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein announced at the United Nations headquarters on 20 July 2017 that he would meet with Chinese officials to push for assurances that Liu Xia would be allowed to leave China, countering Chinese claims that raising human rights concerns amounted to interference in domestic affairs. On 25 July 2017, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio penned an open letter to Liu Xia, "Current U.S. law gives the President of the United States the authority to impose visa bans and to freeze the assets of any foreign citizens who suppress basic human rights; surely the Chinese government's treatment of you and your husband meets this standard." As chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, Rubio also requested U.S. Ambassador to China Terry Branstad to meet with Liu Xia either at the U.S. embassy or her place of residence to understand her current situation and long-term wishes. Photo gallery Move to Germany After Liu Xiaobo's ocean burial, Liu Xia, — as said her friend Liao Yiwu, Chinese poet and dissident living in exile in Germany, — had lived a while in Dali City in Yunnan province together with her younger brother Liu Hui, and when Liu Xia's friends and family had said that she returned to Beijing on 4 August 2017, German and US diplomats tried to visit her flat but were stopped by guards. German embassy diplomats said they would try to push the Chinese government to grant freedom of movement for Liu Xia, although Chinese officials said that Liu Xia was free and could move according to the Chinese law. In May 2018, Liao Yiwu reported with Liu Xia's permission that she was suffering