Blind Chinese dissident hopes to study abroad

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Blind dissident Chen Guangcheng, who left the US embassy in Beijing on Thursday, hopes to study abroad, a Chinese official said on Friday.

A spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry said on Friday that Chen may apply to study abroad according to laws with relevant departments and through the same channels as other Chinese citizens, reported Xinhua.

Ministry spokesperson Liu Weimin made the remarks in response to a question about media reports that Chen hopes to study abroad.

Liu said Chen, a resident of Yinan county in eastern China's Shandong province, is currently receiving treatment at hospital.

China on Wednesday demanded an apology from the US for taking Chen 'via abnormal means' into the US Embassy in Beijing.

Chen on Thursday said his life is in danger and now wants to move to America along with his family.

"We are in danger," he told CNN.

The blind dissident had escaped from house arrest in April and released a video meant for Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao in which he made three demands, including tackling corruption in the country.

Chen had been under house arrest since he was released from a four-year jail sentence in 2010. He sneaked out of his home in Dongshigu town late last month and then took refuge in the US embassy for six days. He left the embassy on Wednesday for a hospital.