Dr. Gao Yaojie has been placed under house arrest so that she cannot attend Vital Voices Global Partnership’s annual awards ceremony, where she would be honored for helping AIDS sufferers.

    Dr. Gao Yaojie has been confined to her apartment in the central Chinese city of Zhengzhou since Feb. 1, according to her friend, Hu Jia, himself a well-known advocate for Chinese AIDS patients. Friends and relatives of Dr. Gao who have tried to visit her found police officers outside her apartment, Mr. Hu said. Dr. Gao, 79, is apparently being confined alone.
    “Now her phone is cut off,” said Mr. Hu, who has spoken to members of Dr. Gao’s family. “She can’t even call out for help if something goes wrong.”

The awards ceremony will be held on March 14th in DC. Senator Clinton is an honorary co-chairwoman of Vital Voices Global Partnership, a group that invests in women leaders.