debilitating clinical depression, after the Beijing government had broken multiple promises that she would 'soon' be free to travel, including, in early April 2018, an arrangement made by Heiko Maas, the German Foreign Minister, to facilitate her travel to Germany. Liao Yiwu spoke with Liu Xia on telephone on 8 April 2018 and they agreed that she would try to write an application at the German Embassy, but she cried, bursting into tears, that she had neither a computer nor smartphone to do it. At the same time, Liao Yiwu promised her that he would try to pressure German politicians with the help of Nobel laureate Herta Müller and other artists and writers in Berlin. Liao Yiwu again called Liu Xia on 30 April 2018 and asked for permission to publish their 8 April 2018 telephone record with her desperate cries to pressure politicians and society to help her leave China. Liu Xia left China and flew to Germany for medical treatment on 10 July 2018. The same day, her younger brother, Liu Hui, remaining in China, wrote in social media WeChat, that Liu Xia flew to Europe to start her new life there, and that he was grateful to all who were helping Liu Xia these past years. Liu Hui was sentenced to 11 years in prison on fraud charges in 2013, but released in 2015 on bail with stringent conditions. Chinese human rights activist Hu Jia said that Liu Hui, by remaining in China, was used as a hostage. Liu Xia has long insisted that her younger brother should leave China with her, due to fears that Liu Hui would be used in China to limit her freedom of speech abroad. References External links Nick Frisch, "Liu Xia Rebuilds Her Career as an Artist" The New Yorker (30 04 2019). Introduce Liu's poems and artworks, including 11 photographs. 1961 births Living people Chinese dissidents 20th-century Chinese poets 21st-century Chinese poets Republic of China poets Poets from Beijing Chinese women poets 21st-century Chinese women writers 20th-century Chinese women writers