Widow of Chinese Nobel dissident Liu Xiaobo arrives in Berlin

Liu Xia, the widow of Chinese Nobel dissident Liu Xiaobo, arrived in Germany after she was released from years of de facto house arrest in China.

Despite facing no charges, the 57-year-old poet had endured heavy restrictions on her movements since 2010 when her husband won the Nobel Peace Prize -- an award that infuriated Beijing.

After being allowed to leave China, Liu flew via Helsinki to Berlin, where she arrived just days before the first anniversary of her husband's death from liver cancer.

Berlin-based dissident Liao Yiwu and German Nobel laureate Herta Mueller were among a dozen people waiting to greet her at the airport, shouting out her name from the viewing terrace as she emerged from the aircraft.

But Liu immediately boarded a black van parked on the airfield tarmac and was whisked away without making any remarks.

Liao had earlier voiced his joy on Twitter, saying: "I am so, so, so happy! Finally, finally, Xia is coming today!!" Liu had become a cause celebre and was seen as a test case for China's attitude to human rights, with activists and foreign powers urging Beijing to allow her to leave the country.

Her husband Liu Xiaobo, a veteran of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, died last year of liver cancer while serving an 11-year sentence for "subversion".

In an emotional phone call with Liao recently, Liu said, "They should add a line to the constitution: 'Loving Liu Xiaobo is a serious crime -- it's a life sentence'."