(Minghui.org) The Tianjin Hexi Court had scheduled the trial of Falun Gong practitioners Ms. Jia Mantao and Ms. Zhou Hongli for December 26, 2013.
After their lawyer delivered a strong defense of their innocence, the judge and the public prosecutor were speechless, and announced that the court was adjourned. No new court date has been set.
The lawyer entered a not guilty plea, stating that it is completely lawful to practice Falun Gong in China. He said that when Jiang Zemin slandered Falun Gong during his interview with the French daily “Le Figaro” in October 1999, there was no legal basis supporting his claim that practicing Falun Gong was illegal. The lawyer went on to say that practitioners who distribute Falun Gong truth-clarification materials have the legitimate right to do so.
Several plainclothes agents waited in a car outside practitioner Ms. Jia Mantao's residents at 6 a.m. on July 16, 2013, until her husband left for work around 7 a.m. Then they broke down the door and ransacked her home.
They arrested Ms. Jia Mantao and forced her son to open every locked cabinet and box in the home. They searched every corner of the house, and confiscated a printer, computer and Falun Gong materials.
Ms. Jia's son was also taken to the Youyilu Police Station and interrogated for over thirty hours. He was not released until he signed his mother's arrest warrant.
Among those involved in the persecution were officers from the Hexi District Youyilu Police Station, their supervisors, two Internet cops, and several others. All were higher level officials. None showed any identification or search warrant.
Six to seven plainclothes agents from the city 610 Office ransacked practitioner Ms. Zhou Hongli's home around 9 a.m. on July 16, 2013. They confiscated a computer, printer, cell phones and Falun Gong materials.
When Ms. Zhou returned from the hospital where she was taking care of her mother, at around 10 a.m., agents arrested her and her son, who was held for 20 hours in the police station.
The agents had tapped the two practitioners' phones and monitored them for days.
Yang Junqi from the Youyilu Police Station also harassed Ms. Jia Mantao's family.
The family of the two practitioners went to the police station many times, demanding their release. The police claimed that they would be released in one month, which later was stretched to two months. After Ms. Jia and Ms. Zhou were held for 70 days, the families received their arrest warrants, and were notified that a court-appointed lawyer had been assigned. The families refused to accept the court-appointed lawyer and hired their own lawyer.
The Hexi Court held the first trial on November 20, 2013. Ms. Zhou Hongli and Ms. Jia Mantao defended their right to practice Falun Gong and the lawyer entered a not guilty plea. The court hearing lasted over two hours, after which it was adjourned.
Parties Responsible for the Persecution:
Yang Qingren(杨庆仁), Hexi Court Judge: +86-22-58313582,
+86-18920182260(Cell)
Wang Chaoliang(王朝亮), Hexi Procuratorate prosecutor: +86-22-28256272
Yang Junqi, policeman from Youyi Police Station
Please refer to the original Chinese text for more names and telephone numbers.