The Defence Statement of Ms. Wang Bo's Father, Wang Xinzhong

Falun Dafa practitioner Ms. Wang Bo, her father Wang Xinzhong, and her mother Liu Shuqin were subjected to an unjust trial recently. It happened a few minutes after 9:00 a.m. on November 10th, 2006. The procedure was held on orders from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) court and Procurator's office in the Chang’an District, Shijiazhuang City. The practitioners were charged with "disrupting the enforcement of the law." Mr. Wang Xinzhong defended himself and his family in court, exposed the CCP's persecution of Dafa practitioners.

The following is a summary of Mr. Wang Xinzhong's defence statement:

Falun Dafa enables practitioners to gain good health and awakens people's kindness. The National People's Congress once conducted an investigation about Falun Gong, and the state also issued awards to Falun Gong. Since the dissemination of Falun Dafa in 1992, to date, more than one hundred million people have taken up the practice of Falun Gong and have all benefited from the practice to various degrees. History has proven this fact. However, in 1999, Jiang Zemin unlawfully maligned of Falun Gong and labelled it as an illegal organisation. He abused his position as General Secretary of the CCP and issued a public notice through the Ministry of Public Security. His conduct violated the legal procedures of the state, and was in total discord with the constitution and law.

1. The Constitution of the People's Republic of China stipulates that "People enjoy freedom of belief, freedom of appeal and freedom of expression." Myself and two of my family members have much benefited, both physically and spiritually, from practising Falun Dafa in the past few years, and many practitioners have experienced miraculous and positive changes. Falun Dafa is practised in about eighty countries and regions around the world, and over six hundred proclamations and letters have been issued to Falun Dafa in various countries and areas [editor’s note: the actual number is more than twelve hundred]. However, due to the persecution by the CCP and the enormous pressure imposed upon the people over the years, as well as the media's misleading propaganda, people cannot express their true thoughts. CCTV's "Focal Point" and mainstream newspapers have distorted the benefits our family has experienced from practising Falun Dafa. The CCTV programmes such as "Focal Point" and the articles carried in the newspapers confused right and wrong and presented white as black. The facts that our family, through practising Falun Dafa, gained unity and harmony, and that we all benefited greatly, physically and mentally, from Falun Dafa, were twisted around by the media. They reported that our family "fell into a miserable situation where the family broke up and was ruined as result of practising Falun Gong." The fabricated stories misled the Chinese people and people around the world and caused us enormous psychological pain and suffering. Our personal rights and reputation were violated; all this cast a dark shadow on our hearts.

We openly explained about how "Focal Point" and the newspapers fabricated stories and twisted the facts about our family. This was done in line with the principle of freedom of expression which is stipulated in the constitution. Even so, it was impossible to completely clear away the negative influence of the misleading media propaganda. Our actions should be protected by the constitution and the law. However, we were unlawfully arrested and put on trial. The arrest and the trial are themselves violations of the law at the hands of the law enforcement agencies.

2. My daughter Ms. Wang Bo was still in unlawful detention after her release from forced labour in 2001. She was kept under strict watch during her three years of studies after she returned to the conservatory of music. She was compelled to live away from other students. She was accompanied by police day and night and forbidden to leave the conservatory on her own. During vacations she was taken back to Shijiazhuang and detained in the Hebei Legal Education Centre (a brainwashing centre). When she wanted to visit her grandma during holidays, she had to ask for permission and was followed by police. Her meeting with her grandma was limited to one hour only. She had no personal freedom. It was an unlawful detention and a serious violation of human rights, violating Article 37 of the constitution. All this severely damaged my daughter's physical and mental health and brought our family enormous misery.

3. It was our personal choice to live in Dalian. Our arrest is illegal. National Security Division personnel from the Chang’an Police Department in Shijiazhuang City broke into our residence and forcibly took away my wife and daughter who were wearing only shorts and slippers. They were taken away without being allowed to take any other clothes with them. To date, the police still have not returned our personal belongings, which includes three suitcases and seasonal clothing for the whole family, as well as the receipt for confiscating our belongings and over 40,000 yuan¹ in cash. They promised at the time to return them to us. The procurator's office and the court in the Chang’an District also promised to return them to us, but to date, nothing has been returned. Such acts also violate our human rights. I hope the court will resolve the issue.

4. The same Chang’an police department agents from the National Security Division also used threats in their interrogation. They called the criminal team to bring a "tiger bench"² and other torture tools to torture me. I was then suffering from a heart problem, with a blood pressure reading of 120/180. I told them that I had high blood pressure and felt dizzy. I told them I was concerned about my life and refused to be interrogated this way. They insisted that I had hung up a Dafa banner, because there was a photo of the banner in our digital camera. They used this as evidence to affirm that I was the one who had hung the banner. They threatened me and subjected me to physical punishment. They forced me to stand up, then sit down a number of times, pressuring and terrorising me. Because my physical condition was rather fragile and I was feeling dizzy, I was terrified. This was also due to several severe beatings at the hands of the police in the past, and also for having been abused with electric batons and rubber clubs, causing spinal injuries and making my left eye bleed. I did not want to put my life in danger. They also lied to me by saying if I admitted that I had hung the banner, they would simply give me a bit of criticism and "education." Under their threats and deceit I lied, to try to stall them. The fact is I did not hang up the banner in question.

Also, the affidavit read out in court by Liu Xia, the prosecutor, contained confessions that were not mine. They were fabrications by the police, and the procurator's office did not check them with me, either. I have stated again and again that I did not hang up the banner, and I did not print that many leaflets exposing the persecution, and I did not distribute fliers. Their handwriting was hasty and careless, and my eyesight was not good, so I could not read clearly what they had written. I signed the deposition in a hasty manner, under pressure.

We are innocent. I hope the court will release us according to law.

Note from editor: Ms. Wang Bo has suffered from persecution and forcible brainwashing at a young age for practising Falun Dafa. She was arrested and sent to forced labour again and again, together with her parents, and her family suffered numerous separations. In April 2004, Wang Bo's family appeared in the CCTV programme, "Focal Point," and was set up by the CCP as a "model" for "reformation through education." In 2005, the family broke away from the control of the 610 Office in Hebei and from the brainwashing centre. They told the outside world how the CCTV tarnished Falun Gong by editing and distorting what they had said. Because they spoke the truth, they left their home and started a life in exile. They were arrested again on July 27th, 2006, and were taken back to Shijiazhuang from Dalian and charged with fabricated accusations.

Note

1. "Yuan" is the Chinese currency; 500 yuan is equal to the average monthly income of an urban worker in China.

2. "Tiger Bench": Prisoners are forced to sit on a small iron bench that is approximately 20 cm (6 inches) tall with their knees tied together. With their hands tied behind their backs or sometimes placed on their knees, they are forced to sit straight up and look straight ahead without movement for long periods of time.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2006/12/11/144392.html