(Minghui.org) “Just let me have a peek at him from outside if you cannot let me in,” begged the wife of the defendant to the bailiff. When he refused her, she collapsed and fell to the ground, her daughter next to her.
Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Xia Yuanxin was unlawfully tried by the Jinzhou District Court in Dalian City, Liaoning Province, on February 25, 2014. His wife's heart problem relapsed when she and her daughter were stopped outside the courtroom and told that their names were not on the admissions list.
Her daughter tried to call the presiding judge, whom they had met before, but he did not answer the phone, and eventually switched it off. This was an outrage, especially since the judge had told them previously: “No matter what, we will make sure that you two can sit in on the trial.”
Mrs. Xia and her daughter were stopped outside the court
Mrs. Xia collapsed and fell to the ground when told that she could not witness her husband's trial
Mrs. Xia had been lying on the ground for six hours, and when the trial ended her daughter helped her get to her feet. She hoped to get a glimpse of her husband. The bailiffs prevented them from moving forward. “I want to see my father. We haven't seen him for six months,” the daughter cried. When Mrs. Xia saw the police car rushing away with her husband, any hope to catch even a glimpse of her loved one was crushed again, and Mrs. Xia fainted a second time.
Mr. Xia had been detained for six months since his arrest on August 24, 2013. His family has not been allowed to visit him.
Mr. Xia's neighbors and coworkers were shocked by his arrest. “Arresting such a good person! The Chinese Communist Party is doomed,” one neighbor commented. Mr. Xia's 90-year old mother suffered a fall and broke her leg when she heard about his arrest, and the whole family was distressed.
Public Trial Merely a Sham
The public courtroom can seat 24 people, but 18 of those seats were occupied by personnel from the police department, the court, and Procuratorate. Only six seats remained for the defendant's family members.
During the entire trial, the procurators never stated which specific code or law Mr. Xia had violated. No witnesses were called and no evidence was presented, except a few blurry photos. While the procurators presented fabricated affidavits from the family, the judge rejected the lawyer's repeated requests to call the family in to testify.
In the trial, Mr. Xia told the judge that his health used to be poor. He became healthy after he began to practice Falun Dafa, but was sick again after the arrest because he could not do the Falun Gong exercises.
The lawyer told the judge that Mr. Xia followed the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, and his freedom of belief was protected by the Constitution. The lawyer's speech was repeatedly interrupted by the judge.
The trial was the only one held on that day due to a power outage. All other trials were postponed. There was no video or audio recordings since there was no power. The court clerk played with her cell phone much of the time.
