BEIJING—Five Chinese activists defied security and made a brief
visit to dissident Liu Xiaobo's wife Liu Xia, who has been
confined under house arrest since her husband was awarded the
Nobel Peace Prize two years ago.   "Since it was Liu Xiaobo's
birthday, we thought we would visit his wife and commemorate it
with her since he can't be with her," Hu said.     In the four-
minute video of the activists' visit on Friday, the activists
are seen arguing with a man guarding the staircase leading to
the couple's apartment in Beijing.  They pushed past the guard
and followed Liu Xia up the stairs to her apartment. There, Liu
tearfully embraced her friend, Xu Youyu, a Beijing intellectual.
She whispered urgently in his ear, the anxiety etched on her
face. She was apparently mindful of the authorities' close
surveillance of her home, which has been bugged, Hu said.  "Liu
Xia was expressing to him her terror. She said the authorities
were putting a lot of pressure on her and her family, and that
they would have to bear