(Clearwisdom.net) Recently, a Singapore court rendered an unjust verdict against two Falun Gong practitioners in Singapore, because they clarified the truth about the persecution against practitioners in China and distributed informational materials to tourists from Mainland China. Such unjust treatment caught the attention of Florida Falun Gong practitioners. On May 5, 2005, several Florida Falun Gong practitioners visited the Singapore Consulate in Miami. They delivered a petition letter and appealed to the Singapore government to uphold justice and withdraw the charges against the Falun Gong practitioners, who are innocent of any illegal activity.
On February 23, 2003, the two wrongly-accused Falun Gong practitioners, Ms. Ng Chye Huay and Ms. Cheng Lujin, were practicing Falun Gong at Esplanade Park. At the same time, they shared with people that Falun Gong is steadily gaining in popularity worldwide, and they explained the truth of the persecution to tourists, especially to those from Mainland China. In May 2004, the Singapore police accused the practitioners of eight counts of illegal activities under Singapore Law, including "assembly without permit," and "possession and distribution of VCDs without an MDA certificate." On April 27, 2005, after having inquired into this case for one year, the Subordinate Court imposed on the two practitioners fines of S$20, 000 (US $12, 216) and S$24,000 (US $14,660), respectively. The practitioners pleaded not guilty, refused to pay the fines and are filing an appeal. Without further due process, the judge ordered the immediate detention of both practitioners, to be served in the Zhangyi Women's Prison. The detention period was not set, but may be up to 24 weeks. In protest, the two practitioners held a hunger strike for seven days and four days respectively. While they were on the hunger strike, their families paid the fines without the practitioners' knowledge, and both practitioners were released on the afternoon of May 3. During the detention, one practitioner's six-month-old child was brought to the prison to visit her mother. The detained mother asked the prison staff whether she could breast-feed the child. The prison staff refused the request. This case will be appealed in July.
Consul John A. Gelety, functioning as liaison for the Embassy in Miami, and another official met with the practitioners and accepted the petition letter, as well as a truth-clarification VCD, Falun Gong reports, and other materials. They discussed the issue with the visiting Falun Gong practitioners honestly and uprightly.
The officials claimed that two practitioners' behavior violated Singapore Law. The Falun Gong practitioners discussed their concerns. They began by discussing the principle that all laws enacted in human society share the ultimate intent of safeguarding justice and righting wrongs. What should one do when a law is misinterpreted or applied incorrectly? What happens when the law is not adequate to protect the innocent and punish the wicked, but instead is applied by a tyrant to do evil? Should we keep silent, do nothing, and be callous regarding the defendant, or should we stand up, speak for justice and tell the truth? Should we evaluate the law as it is written and rectify it?
The practitioners continued by explaining that in China, Falun Gong practitioners have suffered under the inhuman persecution for six years. Because the evil communist party is still ruling China, an end to the persecution is not yet in sight. Falun Gong practitioners have continued to rationally and peacefully appeal to stop the persecution over the past six years. The truth-clarifying materials that were distributed by the two Falun Gong practitioners in Singapore are the same materials that are distributed worldwide. The purpose is to expose the evil nature of the persecution and to arouse people's conscience and righteous thoughts. Anyone with a conscience and sense of justice would not show indifference in the face of the brutal persecution against Falun gong practitioners, and once they realize the truth, they will come to their own conclusions.
However, it is shocking that Singapore, which calls itself an Asian democratic state, is punishing people who speak out the truth and persecutes the voice that asks for redress of an injustice. The Singapore government risks worldwide condemnation while it aligns itself with Communist China, in a world that is leaning more and more towards democracy.
The Falun Gong practitioners quoted Sir Francis Bacon's statement that one unjust verdict equals 10 times a crime. The question is, in what direction will the Singapore government guide its citizens when implementing this so-called law? Is the Singapore government following in the footsteps of Communist China and persecuting Falun Gong practitioners who live by the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance? Won't these actions damage the country, the people, and the government? The question the Singapore government should ask itself is, "Don't we need to reconsider our actions regarding this matter?"
After a long silence, an official from the consulate replied that he believes that the people of Singapore are kind. They believe that the Singapore government should do its utmost to ensure that their legal system develops in a more healthy direction. Another official told the practitioners that he grew up in America and understood very well that freedom of belief is the fundamental foundation for a country's development. And he believes that Singapore will serve justice in this case.
Then, the Falun Gong practitioners presented the book, Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party. They spoke of the increasing number of membership withdrawals from the Chinese Communist Party, caused by this book. They pointed out that China is at the point where its citizens are saying good-bye to the Communist Party and China will soon become a free society. If Singapore's government is aligning its future with that of the Communist Party, for short-term economic benefits, its shortsightedness is actually going counter to the worldwide trend.
The practitioners concluded their discussion by saying that their concerns were also stated in the petition letter. They said they fully hoped that the Singapore government and its judiciary would carefully re-evaluate this case, and render a "not guilty" verdict with regard to the innocent Falun Gong practitioners. The practitioners fully hope to protect the international recognition that Singapore has established.
The embassy officials promised to share our concerns, and to deliver the petition letter and all the other materials to the Singapore government. They also asked for the contact information of the visiting practitioners, should they see the need to get in touch with them in the future.
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