Important Hearing To Be Held in Bo Xilai Case in Washington DC

On Wednesday, February 7th in Judge Richard Leon's courtroom in the U.S. Courthouse in Washington, D.C. there will be a hearing in the case against Bo Xilai, Minister of Finance in China, on the issue of whether Bo is entitled to diplomatic immunity protection as a visiting official to the U.S. The address of the Courthouse is: Judge Richard Leon's Courtroom U.S. Courthouse 300 Constitution Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C.

Ordinarily, diplomatic immunity is reserved for regular members of the diplomatic corps and Secretaries of State, but the U.S. Government is trying to convince the court that it should be extended much more broadly to all foreign officials who come to the U.S. as part of "Special Missions." This would make it virtually impossible to file human rights lawsuits against foreign officials in U.S. courts. The case also is important because it sends a clear signal to courts around the world who have dismissed the Bo (and related) cases on the grounds of immunity without distinguishing between gradations or types of immunity. Diplomatic immunity is a special term reserved for certain types of visitors and cannot and should not be used to immunize all visitors from China. The plaintiff's counsel said that he is hopeful that we can set good legal precedent with this case. If we win on the immunity issue, we plan to take this case to trial and win conclusively. Bo Xilai was sued for genocide, crimes against humanity, and torture when he visited Washington DC in April 2004. The lead counsel in this case is Morton Sklar, Director of the World Organization for Human Rights USA. He has done a tremendous job, as is indicated in the court's setting this matter down for oral arguments. Human Rights Law Foundation (HRLF) is also working to assist Mr Sklar on this important case.