Australia: The Supreme Court of New South Wales Holds Hearing on Lawsuit against Zhang Dejiang

On February 1st, 2006, a hearing was held in the Supreme Court of New South Wales in the lawsuit against Zhang Dejiang filed by Sydney Falun Gong practitioner Xie Yan. It was the first hearing for this case and the defendant was absent. The judge listened to the explanation of the plaintiff's lawyer and decided to continue the legal proceedings. The second hearing was scheduled for June 2nd, 2006. After the first hearing, practitioners held a press conference in front of the Supreme Court about legal proceedings against persons responsible for the persecution of practitioners in China. They pointed out that though the defendants refuse to respond to the summons, practitioners will prepare carefully and explain the facts in depth. They are asking the court to hold a trial in default and bring Jiang and other criminals of the persecution to justice.

The Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian and other major local media attended the hearing and press conference and interviewed the practitioners.

Sydney practitioner Xie Yan sues Zhang Dejiang, CCP Committee Secretary of Guangdong Province	Artist Zhang Cuiying relates the progress of the lawsuit against Jiang Zemin

Zhang Dejiang, Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Committee of Guangdong Province, Actively Pursued and Is Responsible for Persecution against Falun Gong

A Falun Gong spokesperson presided over the press conference and discussed the progress on several lawsuits that practitioners have filed to seek justice, and stop the persecution and hate propaganda of the CCP. Besides the lawsuit against Zhang Dejiang filed by Xie Yan, at the end of March the Supreme Court will hold its second hearing on the lawsuit against Jiang Zemin, the chief culprit of the persecution, who has been sued by Zhang Cuiying. At the beginning of April, a libel lawsuit against a local Chinese media will also be heard in court. The Chinese media, under pressure and instigation of the Chinese Consulate, slandered Falun Gong.

Ms. Xie Yan explained why she sued Zhang Dejiang and described her suffering physically and mentally when she was imprisoned in a labour camp in Guangdong for two and a half years and then detained in brainwashing centres. She witnessed a practitioner being tortured to disability and the death of a pregnant woman practitioner in the same brainwashing centre. Ms. Xie said that there were more than 60 documented deaths of practitioners due to police brutality in Guangdong Province and that half of them occurred after Zhang Dejiang took power. Zhang is responsible for the persecution and actively carries out the persecution policy in Guangdong Province.

Ms. Xie said that practitioners in China have no place to file complaints and that righteous lawyers who would like to seek justice for the practitioners are being persecuted by the CCP regime. For example, lawyer Guo Guodin was forced into exile, lawyer Yang Zaixin's license was suspended and renowned lawyer Gao Zhisheng's office was shut down. Ms. Xie said that she has the right to bring Zhang Dejiang to justice in Australia and let the world know the truth, since she lives in a free country.

WOIPFG: The Persecution Is Destroying Human Spirituality and Basic Conscience

At the press conference, a representative from the World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong (WOIPFG) said that the mission of WOIPFG is to safeguard Falun Gong practitioners' basic human rights. WOIPFG has conducted investigations on a large scale and in depth on the CCP regime's persecution of Falun Gong. It was concluded that the persecution is the worst human rights disaster since World War II. Zhang Dejiang, in leading the Guangdong government, has cooperated with and promoted actively the persecution and he is responsible for the crimes committed in the persecution.

For the international community, it is very important to recognise the huge size and scope of the CCP's persecution of Falun Gong, and that the persecution is destroying people's spirituality and basic conscience.

Australian Chinese artist, Falun Gong practitioner Zhang Cuiying also gave a speech at the press conference and talked about the progress of her lawsuit against Jiang Zemin. The lawsuit is being processed in the Supreme Court and will have a hearing at the end of March. She learned that Jiang's faction was very worried and were pressuring the Australian government to attempt to block the lawsuit. Ms. Zhang called on the media to pay attention to the lawsuit against the Foreign Minister in Canberra for his signing monthly certificates to restrict practitioners from holding banners in their protests at the Chinese Embassy.

Background of lawsuit against Zhang Dejiang

On November 7th, 2005, Zhang Dejiang led commerce delegates to participate in the China Guangdong-Australian Business Conference 2005. Ms. Xie Yan sued him for his crime of torture. On November 8th, the lawsuit papers were handed to Zhang Dejiang.

Zhang Dejiang is the third high level CCP official sued overseas since the announcement of the Falun Dafa Association.

The other two are Huang Huahua, Governor of Guangdong Province and Lin Yanzhi, Deputy Secretary of the CCP Committee of Jilin Province, who were sued when they visited the United States and Canada, respectively.