Judicial authorities in Beijing have shut down the law firm of a prominent civil rights lawyer after he refused to withdraw an open letter urging President Hu Jintao to respect freedom of religion and stop persecuting members of the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement.
An Open Letter to President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao from Lawyer Gao Zhisheng
Before I could sit down and send my greetings to you, my two fellow compatriots, out of solicitude for another group of our common fellow compatriots, Falun Gong believers, I went to several places outside Beijing to investigate the real situation about Falun Gong believers suffering a new wave of systematic, large-scale, organized illegal persecution. During my days outside Beijing, I was hiding, laying low like a thief. That’s why many in the outside world spread the hearsay that I was “missing.”
This new round of continued, systematic, large-scale, and organized brutal persecution targeting our fellow Chinese citizens who believe in Falun Gong is an ongoing reality, not only revealed in recent letters addressed to us from different regions, but also a reality we personally witnessed during our trip outside Beijing. As a Chinese citizen, and as a lawyer, I am willing to bear any legal responsibility for witnessing and publicizing these facts.
A Chinese lawyer who criticised government suppression of followers of the banned Falun Gong movement and sought to represent private oil investors in a landmark lawsuit against the state has been ordered to suspend his practice for a year.
Zhang Dejiang, Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Committee of Guangdong Province was served today with a summons from the Supreme Court of NSW for the crime of torture.
Zhang Dejiang is among a group of top government officials in China who have been involved in implementing and sustaining a campaign of eradication of Falun Gong practitioners in China, particularly in Guangdong and Zhejiang Provinces.
The Falun Dafa (Falun Gong) associations of Australia have formally requested the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs to refuse entry to Zhang Dejiang, Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Committee of Guangdong Province.
There are many similar incidents in our life where we judge others based on our prejudice and later discover that we have been blind to the truth.
At present, Falun Dafa is being persecuted in Mainland China. Dafa practitioners have withstood enormous pressure under this unprecedented tribulation and made it through several years. There are many heroic and inspiring stories of Dafa practitioners. This article is a review from the historical perspective and discovers how we had steadfastly cultivated ourselves in our past lives.
One day, everyone will offer the praise, “Falun Gong’s resistance to the persecution is a noble cause.” At that time, people will be glad to have given us their support, because we protected the universal values of humanity, and defended our faith.
