(Minghui.org) Mr. Luo Guolong from Shenyang City, Liaoning Province was tried on libel charges on January 25, 2016 after he filed a criminal complaint against Jiang Zemin and holding the former Chinese dictator responsible for his repeated labor camp detentions and brutal torture.
Mr. Luo's lawyer argued at the trial that his client has a constitutional right to seek justice from the courts, as Jiang initiated the persecution of Falun Gong that resulted in Mr. Luo's ordeal.
Mr. Luo's family said after the hearing, “The lawyer made it crystal clear that our loved one broke no law. The prosecutor had no legal grounds to charge Mr. Luo whatsoever.”
His family, however, is worried about the verdict the judge will hand down, given that sentences of Falun Gong practitioners are usually pre-determined.
The 62-year-old farmer remains detained following his arrest on September 8, 2015, less than two months after he mailed his criminal complaint against Jiang.
Court Violates Legal Procedures
Shenbei Court did not inform Mr. Luo's family of his upcoming trial until two business days before the scheduled date. On January 21, 2016, his family received a notice saying that the trial was scheduled for the following Monday. By law, they should have been given at least one week of notice.
Mr. Luo's family scrambled to hire a defense lawyer for him. Fortunately, they were able to secure Mr. Li Jinglin, a lawyer from Beijing.
Although Chinese law stipulates that defense lawyers must be given at least 10 days to review their clients' case files, the court turned down Mr. Luo's family's request to delay the trial.
The lawyer was given only 30 minutes to scan the case right before the trial began.
Only Three Family Members Allowed in the Courtroom
The trial started at 9:30 a.m. on January 25, with only three of Mr. Luo's family members allowed inside the 100-person-capacity courtroom.
Tortured in Forced Labor Camps
Mr. Luo testified that he was shocked with electric batons, brutally beaten, and forced into a straitjacket on many occasions during his three labor camp terms. He said that he should never have had to pay such a price for refusing to give up his belief in Falun Gong. He holds Jiang Zemin responsible for his suffering.
The judge adjourned the proceedings without issuing a verdict.
Mr. Luo remains in detention. Both his wife and son were so traumatized by Mr. Luo's arrest that she now suffers vision loss and his son has problems hearing. They are asking for help to secure Mr. Luo's release.
Shenbei Court: +86-24-89749899
Background
In 1999, Jiang Zemin, as head of the Chinese Communist Party, overrode other Politburo standing committee members and launched the violent suppression of Falun Gong.
The persecution has led to the deaths of many Falun Gong practitioners during the past 16 years. More have been tortured for their belief and even killed for their organs. Jiang Zemin is directly responsible for the inception and continuation of the brutal persecution.
Under his personal direction, the Chinese Communist Party established an extralegal security organ, the “610 Office,” on June 10, 1999. The organization overrides police forces and the judicial system in carrying out Jiang's directive regarding Falun Gong: to ruin their reputations, cut off their financial resources, and destroy them physically.
Chinese law allows for citizens to be plaintiffs in criminal cases, and many practitioners are now exercising that right to file criminal complaints against the former dictator.
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