(Clearwisdom.net, February 9, 2004) Recently, China utilized economic interests to induce someone in the French government to suborn French police to unreasonably arrest and violently treat peaceful and kind Falun Dafa practitioners. This severely violated French laws and the spirit of freedom, equality and fellowship that France has always advocated. The behavior also violated Falun Gong practitioners' legal rights and in reality, it connived with Jiang's regime's more-than-four-year inhuman persecution of Falun Gong. The situation was severe.
On the afternoon of February 5, 2004, French Falun Dafa Association and renowned attorney, Mr. Leon Lef Forster, jointly held a press conference to announce their plan to file a complaint against related people who were responsible for the incident.
French Falun Dafa Association and attorney Mr. Leon Lef Forster jointly hold a press conference | Attorney Mr. Leon Lef Forster accepting interview |
Attorney Forster first introduced to reporters that the defendants of this lawsuit would be open; no specific defendants were named. The reason was that he hoped the court would find out the one who issued the order to let the police unreasonably detain Falun Gong practitioners on January 24 during the Chinese New Year Parade on Champs Elysees Avenue. When reporters asked why the police station was not the defendant, French Falun Dafa Association expressed that they wanted to find out the origin of this incident.
Attorney Forster stated later that this legal procedure did not mean to offend the government, but was aimed at those unknown people who were responsible for the illegal violence and arbitrary interpellation and questioning. He said, "We want to know whether someone clearly issued the order to them, or was it done due to fear or personal will. Did someone receive orders to apply such suppressive measures against these peaceful people who wore yellow scarves? We saw a person siting in meditation on TV, with his eyes closed, very peacefully . He only wanted to express his support for those persecuted people and remind the French Parliament that some people are persecuted in China."
In the end, the attorney said that what the Falun Gong practitioners asked him to do in the court was to peacefully appeal. It was a mutual understanding, a concern towards the Chinese people and an attention to human rights.
When reporters asked whether related French police violated the law and whether they were aiming at Falun Gong practitioners, Attorney Forster emphasized once again that the French police's behavior completely violated the French spirit of freedom of expression. They cannot find an arbitrary excuse to question someone at will. If it is not within a certain judicatory scope, they even have no right to check other people's identification cards. In addition, unless the situation requires or it is necessary to safeguard social order and peace, the police have no right to violently treat citizens or anyone in France.
AFP, Central News Agency, New Tang Dynasty TV, Epoch Times and Digipresse came to report on the news.