It's been 22 years since Liu, then 28, took to the streets of Beijing to fight for democracy in China.
Though the smoke of the doomed revolution has long since settled, the exiled Liu finds himself shadowboxing with an army of foes and fears -- and repeated attempts by the communist government to take him out, he believes.
He flings accusations near and far: his estranged wife tampered with his car, trying to kill him; his ex-employer spied on him to secure his silence about atrocities in his homeland; and even Google failed to protect his e-mail from hackers.
J.C. Rice
STRUGGLE GOES ON: Gang Liu lives in New York after fleeing China for his part in the 1989 Tiananmen Square uprising -- but his inner demons drove off estranged military officer, whom he accused of plotting to murder him.
"If I don't fight back, they'll kill me," he told The Post of his communist enemies.
Physically and psychologically scarred from a brutal eight years in Chinese prisons, Liu, 50, sees the enemy around every corner. And the courts have been left to sort out what is truth and what is paranoia.
After his release from prison in 1995, he fled to the US, where he was granted political asylum. During 15 years in the US, he's gone to Columbia, gotten a Wall Street job, married and had a daughter.
He believes his estranged wife, is a Chinese military officer. When Morgan Stanley suffered a February cyber-attack, Liu was convinced it was because he worked there. Chinese security forces have called him on the phone, threatening his life, he says.
The Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protest ended in massive bloodshed. More than 1 million young Chinese in and around the symbolic plaza faced off against the military, which used tanks to clear the streets. Hundreds, if not thousands, were killed.
"They came from all directions," Liu recalled. "People were very angry."
Afterward, Liu was third on the Chinese government's list of the 21 most-wanted student leaders responsible for organizing the protests. He was caught and held by authorities for nearly two years before trial. He was quickly convicted and sent to prison for another six years.
There were regular beatings, he claims. He was shocked with an electric prod -- in the mouth, "in sensitive areas," he said.
He was forced to make his way secretly to Beijing and Guangzhou, switching trains to avoid detection.
He took a ferry to Hong Kong, where he found protection at the American Consulate.
"It was very dangerous," he said.
He got a Wall Street job and married Guo, 38, a business exec at Pfizer, in 2007, after she reached out to him via online dating. The couple had a daughter, Angela, now 2.
But then, Liu claims, he discovered his wife had gotten a $60,000 payment from China, had contacted a government agency there and stole money from him.
In the midst of a bitter, still not finalized divorce, Guo got an order of protection. Liu has been arrested for allegedly violating the order.
"Guo threatened to kill me if I disclose her military background," he wrote in federal court papers. "Guo was sent by the Chinese Central Commission to the USA and to kill me."
He also plans on suing Morgan Stanley, which fired him last month after pressuring him to stop his dissident activities, Liu said. Morgan Stanley confirmed Liu's firing but wouldn't comment on the case.
Liu now speaks out on a blog and Twitter about China.
"Once the Chinese government lists you as a target, you have no way to hide, no way to escape," he said.
kboniello@nypost.com
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