CBS World News Roundup + 9:00 am news – April 7, 1983 – Gordon Skene Sound Collection –
Diplomatic kerfuffles today – Chinese Tennis star Hu Na, who defected to the U.S. in 1982 was finally granted asylum. In retaliation to the Hu Na story, China suspended all cultural exchange programs with the U.S. – the nineteen year old Tennis star defected in July of 1982 while touring California for the Federation Cup with the China Federation Cup team, on her second day in America, Hu Na fled her hotel room and sought refuge in the home of friends. On this day she requested political asylum, stating that she had a “well-founded” fear of persecution because of repeatedly refusing to join the Communist Party of China.
It was the first time since 1979 that China took a specific action against the U.S. in any program that had been previously agreed and this was the most serious thing to have happened. Despite the fact that Hu Na wasn’t exactly a household name in China because Tennis wasn’t a popular game in China, and not really played except by people who were preparing for international competition. Nonetheless. Hu Na’s defection and now here granting of asylum made it a scandal of monumental proportions. According to the Official Chinese version, the entire Chinese people were deeply disturbed by the Hu Na defection, not by her decision but by what the Chinese Official Press described as a conspiracy by the U.S. and certain elements supporting Taiwan who were said to have seduced and coerced Hu Na into her defection. The U.S. Embassy in Beijing issued a statement expressing regret over “Chinese Overreaction”.
And meanwhile – the Socialist government of France survived a no-confidence vote today during a Parliament session that had all the circus-like drama that ordinarily would mark is most controversial deliberations. But in the end, in a nearly party line vote, the Socialist dominated assembly in the pre-dawn hours gave the socialist government of Francois Mitterand a vote of confidence it was seeking and would give France the tough austerity program that most French were dreading.
And this day marked the 50th anniversary in 1979 of the release of the original movie King Kong, and some promoters of the film sought to put a 10 story replica of the famous Ape atop the Empire State Building. After several hours struggling to get Kong up, the famous ape developed a tear in his shoulder, forcing stuntmen to take him down for repairs. The promoters admitted putting an 84 foot Ape on top of the Empire State Building wasn’t such a good idea after all.
And along with the continuing story of Hu Na, that’s a small slice of what happened on this April 7th in 1983 by way of The CBS World News Roundup.
