Blind Chinese human rights lawyer Chen Guangcheng says the wave of democratic reform in China is irreversible despite its slow progression.

Chen made the remarks in a meeting at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York on Thursday. He stressed that through the Internet China’s Communist Party has considerably lost its control over the Chinese people.

Chen added that the Chinese central government is going in the right direction. But he criticized local authorities for oppressing his family and acting lawlessly.

The blind human rights lawyer dramatically escaped from house arrest and took refuge in the U.S. embassy in Beijing in late April. He was eventually allowed to leave China and arrived in the U.S. on May 19th.