Monday October 25, 2004

Former President Jiang Zemin of China should be prosecuted for crimes against humanity, the University of Dar es Salaam Human Rights Association has said.

In a press statement, the association has also condemned alleged Chinese government secret agents' June 28, 2004 attempted assassination of five Falun Gong practitioners in South Africa.

The attempt resulted in one of the practitioners becoming disabled, David Liang, who narrated his moving story on how he escaped death at the hands of the Chinese agents on Saturday during a public debate held at the campus' Nkrumah Hall in Dar es Salaam.

Liang said the agents trailed them at the Johannesburg International Airport with the explicit aim of killing them.

A two-page statement, signed by the association's president Bahati Tweve, expressed distaste for the persecution of Falun Gong by the Chinese government under the stewardship of Jiang.

The association expressed strong support for Falun Gong in all the legal procedures being undertaken to bring perpetrators to justice.

The statement said the Chinese government allegedly fears the practice of body and mind based on the universal principle of truthfulness, compassion and tolerance.

"The University of Dar es Salaam Human Rights University members support efforts to bring Jiang Zemin to Justice for his crimes against humanity," reads part of the statement.

The association has also written to Dr. Koffi Annan, the Secretary General of the United Nations, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the United Republic of Tanzania, the Chinese Ambassador of Tanzania and the United Nations Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva, Switzerland condemning China's crime against humanity.