Ms. Zhang Lirong Falsely Charged and Brought to Trial; Her Family Barred from Courtroom

Name: Zhang Lirong
Gender: Female
Age: 40
Address: Unknown
Occupation: Unknown
Date of Most Recent Arrest: July 13th, 2009
Most recent place of detention: Shenyang City Detention Centre
City: Shenyang
Province: Liaoning
Persecution Suffered: Interrogation, Detention

Key Persecutors: The People's Court of Tiexi District, Shenyang City, telephone: 86-24-25860539; Li Yunfei, female, court chief; Chen Yan, judge.

On October 15th, 2009, the court of Tiexi District, Shenyang City, Liaoning Province brought Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Zhang Lirong to trial based on false charges fabricated jointly by the local 610 Office¹ and the National Security Group of Tiexi District.

The court did not inform Ms. Zhang's family of the trial. Guards were present the day of the trial as if something dangerous were going to happen. The street was closely monitored by police, who took photos of every person who passed by. The court successfully prevented Ms. Zhang's family from attending the trial, and also one of Ms. Zhang's lawyers from entering the court. Officers in charge of the case were Li Yunfei (female), the court chief, and Chen Yan, the judge.

On October 16th, Ms. Zhang's family came to the court early. When they were about to enter the court an officer stopped them, saying that only Zhang's mother and sister were allowed to enter. But then they forbid Ms. Zhang's mother and sister from entering by using the excuse that they did not have the proper ID. Ms. Zhang's sister then took a taxi home and came back with the required ID so they could attend the trial, but the officers told her that she could not enter with her bag. So, she gave her bag to her relatives and attempted to enter the court again, but the officers refused to admit her again, saying: "The trial commenced one minute ago and now no one is allowed to enter." In this way, all family members of Ms. Zhang were barred from attending the trial. At the same time, one of Ms. Zhang's lawyers was denied admittance to the trial too.

Another lawyer provided defence for Ms. Zhang. He said, in accordance with the law, it is not against the law to believe in Falun Gong or to explain the facts about Falun Gong to people. He requested that the court release Ms. Zhang immediately. In the so-called open trial, all attenders were police of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The trial started at 9 o'clock and ended at about 11 o'clock and no decision was made.

Ms. Zhang, 40 years old, lives in Shenyang City, Liaoning Province and is recognised as a kind person. She started practising Falun Gong 13 years ago. All of her illnesses, like gastric pain and headaches, went away and she became more broadminded and kinder than before. She often generously helped her friends without asking for anything in return. After the CCP started persecuting Falun Gong, she had been sentenced to forced labour twice for total of 5 years, one time at the Longshan Labour Camp and another time at the Masanjia Labour Camp of Shenyang City.

On July 13th, 2007, Ms. Zhang was arrested by police from the Worker's Police Station of the police department of Tiexi District and the National Security group with the accusation that she had publicised Falun Gong. Her home was also ransacked. The arrest left her elderly parents and her young child without a care giver, and her mother and sister were shocked so badly that they were ill and bedridden. Her 70-year-old mother-in-law went to the National Security Group, the Procuratorate and Court of Tiexi District many times, but they simply dismissed her without giving her any information about Ms. Zhang.

According to the latest information, after the trial on October 16,th 2009, the court of Tiexi District will try Ms. Zhang for a second time about two weeks later at the end of October. We hereby ask for people's attention to this matter.

Note

1. "The 610 office" is an agency specifically created to persecute Falun Gong, with absolute power over each level of administration in the Party and all other political and judiciary systems.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2009/10/18/210599.html