(Minghui.org) Mr. Ronald Gläser, Member of the Berlin State Parliament and vice chairman of the Alternative Party (AfD), penned another letter to Li Zaiwu, the municipal secretary of Rizhao City, Shandong Province, on November 23, 2023, demanding the immediate and unconditional release of detained Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Yuande Ding. Mr. Ding is the father of a German resident. This is the second letter Mr. Gläser has written to Li in the past three months. 

Mr. Ronald Gläser, Member of the Berlin State Parliament and vice chairman of the AfD, condemned the CCP’s persecution during a rally celebrating World Falun Dafa Day on May 13, 2023. 

Mr. Ronald Gläser’s letter to Li Zaiwu:

In his latest letter, Mr. Gläser expressed particular concern about the ongoing forced organ harvesting crimes in China and his worry whether Mr. Ding would fall victim to this egregious crime.

He wrote, “The China Tribunal, chaired by Sir Geoffrey Nice KC, who led the prosecution of Serbian war criminal Slobodan Milosevic at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, concluded in its final judgement on June 17, 2020, that forced organ harvesting has been committed for years throughout China on a significant scale, and that Falun Gong practitioners have been one – and probably the main – source of organ supply.”

Mr. Gläser mentioned that he is concerned about the military connection of Li’s predecessor, Zhang Hui, the current deputy municipal Party secretary of Qingdao City, who used to serve as the Municipal Party secretary of Rizhao City and the first Party secretary of the Party Committee of the Rizhao Military District. 

“I am deeply concerned about the fate and lives of two Chinese Falun Gong practitioners – Mr. Yuande Ding and his wife Mrs. Ruimei Ma – not only about the possibility of their being tortured, but also of their becoming victims of forced organ harvesting by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Since June 13, 2023, Mr. Yuande Ding has been unlawfully imprisoned in Rizhao City Remand Prison. No family members are allowed to visit him in detention,” he wrote.

Mr. Gläser also said that the ongoing persecution of Falun Gong has no legal basis. In addition to Zhang, several other officials, including Wang Xinsheng, the mayor of Rizhao City and former secretary of the Political and Legal Committee of Rizhao City; Li Gang, director of the Public Security Bureau of Rizhao City; Wu Guangfeng, secretary of the Wulian County committee; and Li Jiang, director of the Public Security Bureau of Wulian County, have all “seriously violated the fundamental rights of all persecuted Falun Gong practitioners in Rizhao City that are enshrined in the Chinese Constitution.” He demands the authorities to investigate and prosecute these individuals in accordance with Chinese Criminal Procedure Law. 

At the end of the letter, Mr. Gläser again urged the Rizhao City authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Mr. Ding and issue passports for him and his wife to reunite with their son in Germany.

“I will monitor the case closely and extensively, and request that you keep us informed in detail of every new stage,” Mr. Gläser wrote to Li. He also urged Li to share his letter with Wang Yi, the foreign minister of China; Wu Ken, the Chinese Ambassador to Germany; Lin Wu, the provincial Party secretary of Shandong Province; and Li’s predecessor, Zhang Hui.

In light of the EU-China Summit to be held on December 7 and 8, 2023, Mr. Gläser wrote another letter to Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, urging her to bring up the topic of securing the release of detained Falun Gong practitioners when she interacts with Chinese officials during the summit.

Targeted in a Group Arrest

Mr. Ding Yuande [editor’s note: Per Chinese convention, a person’s family name is listed first, and their given name is listed second], a resident of Rizhao City, Shandong Province, was arrested on May 12, 2023 in a police sweep of about 100 local Falun Gong practitioners. To date, six practitioners are still held in custody: Ms. Guo Xin and Ms. Jiang Haibo at the Wulian County Detention Center, and Ms. An Fengxia, Ms. Hong Meishuang, Mr. Gong Hua and Mr. Ding at the Rizhao City Detention Center. 

Mr. Ding was scheduled to appear in the Wulian County Court on November 28, 2023. Details about the hearing were not available at the time of writing. His wife, Ms. Ma, who was arrested the same day, was released on bail on May 24. The police have frequently harassed her over the past few months, especially given their son’s relentless efforts in exposing the persecution and rescuing them. 

The other five practitioners, along with another 16 practitioners who were arrested on the same day but have been released on bail, were to stand trial at the Wulian County Court between December 4 to 6. The other 16 practitioners are: Qin Chong, Wang Yun, Huang Shifang, Jiang Ying, Liang Geyuan, Yang Chuanying, Zhu Xiuxia, Han Bangli, Qin Yuying, Fan Shuling, Wang Shuhua, Gao Xiuhua, Su Cuihua, Wang Xuli, Ding Xi, and Han Gongying.

Related reports:

Germany: Media and the Public Support Falun Dafa Practitioner’s Efforts to Rescue His Persecuted Family in China

Slovak Republic: Former Speaker of the National Council Asks the Chinese Regime to Stop Persecuting Practitioners Ding Yuande and Ma Ruimei

Berlin, Germany: Member of State Parliament Requests the Release of Detained Falun Gong Practitioners in China

International Media Report on and Voice Their Support to Condemn the Arrest of Falun Gong Practitioner Ding Yuande

Germany: International Society for Human Rights Writes to Police Department Director in Shandong Province, Urging Him to Release a Falun Dafa Practitioner