(Minghui.org) Mr. Cao Dong, a Falun Gong practitioner who graduated from the Foreign Studies University of Beijing, was again arrested and sent to a forced labor camp on June 8, 2012 after being released from jail less than one year ago. His family and friends hired a lawyer to defend him, but were repeatedly interfered with by Chinese communist authorities.
On Friday, August 31, Mr. Cao's lawyer, Mr. Li Xiongbing, brought an “Administrative Reconsideration Letter” that he had prepared for Mr. Cao to sign to the Dongcheng Branch Station Detention Center. Detention authorities refused to allow Mr. Cao to sign the paperwork, claiming that their duty was to detain people and that, in order for the lawyer to meet with his client, he had get approval from the Commission of Labor Camps in Beijing.
On Monday, September 3, Mr. Cao's lawyer went to the Commission of Labor Camps in Beijing to submit the “Administrative Reconsideration Letter” and asked to meet with his client so that he could sign the document. The receptionist told him to go home and wait for a response. Feeling helpless, the lawyer left. After, Mr. Cao's family and friends waited anxiously for the response.
On the morning of Tuesday, September 4, when Mr. Cao's family rushed to the Dongcheng Detention Center in the Qiliqu District to inquire if Mr. Cao was still there, they were told that he was. In fact, on August 28, Mr. Cao had already been transferred to the Men's Labor Camp of Xin'an in Beijing. That's to say, on August 31, when his lawyer went to the detention center to see him, he had already been re-located. But the detention authorities intentionally concealed the truth so that Mr. Cao's lawyer and his family would waste their time going back and forth between the detention center and the Commission of Labor Camps and miss the “Administrative Reconsideration Period” deadline, which was September 7.
That same day, Mr. Cao's lawyer received a phone call from the Commission of Labor Camps of Beijing, denying the lawyer's request to see his client.
On Wednesday, September 5, at about 9 a.m., Mr. Cao's lawyer and his family went to the Men's Labor Camp of Xin'an and requested to see Mr. Cao so he could sign the “Administrative Reconsideration” document. After much effort, at about 10 a.m., Mr. Cao's lawyer was finally able to see him. Their meeting took place in a room inside the labor camp, and it was monitored by the police from the labor camp. They spoke for about an hour.
Mr. Cao's “Administrative Reconsideration Letter” pointed out that the Commission of Labor Camp's decision to sentence Mr. Cao lacked factual basis and went beyond the scope of the law, that the Commission itself has violated the Constitution and the rules of the communist authorities. Consequently, his case should be revoked and his freedom restored immediately.
Six years ago, Mr. Cao met with the Vice Chairman of the European Parliament, Mr. McMillan-Scott, and described to him the cruel persecution that he, his wife, and other practitioners had suffered. Shortly after that, he was arrested by the communist authorities and sentenced to five years in jail. His wife, Ms. Young Xiaojing, was repeatedly subjected to long-term labor camp terms, and, because of the persecution, had become homeless. She died on October 1, 2009. Mr. Cao was released from jail on September 28, 2011.
Related articles:
“Mr. Cao Dong Persecuted in Tianshui Prison, Gansu Province”
http://en.minghui.org/html/articles/2011/5/26/125544.html#.UEn33Xo9c6g
“Mr. Cao Dong's Term Illegally Extended in Gansu Tianshui Prison”
http://en.minghui.org/html/articles/2011/6/21/126163.html#.UEn3iHo9c6g
“Cao Dong's Illegally-Extended Sentence Is About to Expire; the Communist Party Is Threatening to Send Him to a Brainwashing Center”
http://en.minghui.org/html/articles/2011/9/19/128205.html#.UEn3RXo9c6g
“Mr. Cao Dong Still Detained in Prison Beyond His Sentence (Photos)”
http://en.minghui.org/html/articles/2011/9/25/128323.html#.UEn3FHo9c6g
