Recently, Ms. Zhang Huayun, a Falun Gong practitioner from Chengdu City, and her mother were tried in court. They denied the charges against them and stated that the police interrogated them by torture. Their two lawyers entered innocent pleas on their behalf.
Ms. Zhang, an employee of the Jinniu District, Chengdu City State Tax Bureau, was arrested at her home in October 2009. She and her mother were tried at Qingyang District Court in Chengdu City on July 20th. The court and the Procuratorate tried to force Ms. Zhang to plead guilty by offering a reduced sentence. However, Ms. Zhang, who had been detained and tortured for nearly ten months, denied the charges, clearly stating that she was innocent. She also narrated the continuous torture she went through for four days during the "investigation period." Her mother also spoke of the same torture and persecution she went through. The mother stated that the statements they obtained from her were the result of continuous torture that caused her to be in an unclear mental state.
The two lawyers representing them stated that the two practitioners were innocent. The lawyer said that according to the regulation on handling criminal cases precluding illegal evidence, the interrogation statements constitute illegal evidence and the court must call for an investigation. However, the judge ignored this request. When the lawyers defended the plaintiffs from the angle of "freedom of belief," the judge interrupted them and refused to allow the lawyers to elaborate further.
The court later called for a recess. Ms. Zhang is still being detained in the Chengdu City Detention Centre.
Individuals involved in the persecution:
Qingyang District Procuratorate Prosecutor: Wang Lili
Secretary: Peng Tao
Judge of Qingyang District Court: Tang Zhimin
Wangjiagui Detention Centre 86-28-86301532, head Liu Tao, guard Li Haodong
Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2010/7/24/227460.html
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