(Clearwisdom.net)
Part 1: http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2004/5/29/48698.html
Question 3: Some from the West have asked, "The persecution of Falun Gong is a mistake by the Chinese government. Why is Falun Gong suing Jiang Zemin? Isn't this targeting him unfairly?
Li Zhongming: Something here needs to be clarified.
Most people who have never lived in China lack a deep understanding of what the dictatorship is like. They tend to imagine and analyze the things happening in other countries with a polite attitude and simple mind. This can cause different understandings and conclusions.
Generally speaking, Western countries have relatively efficient and stable political systems. The people elect a government that they feel will best represent their interests. The legislative, administrative and judicial systems monitor and balance each other to limit the power of each. As a result, these nations' political systems are relatively more efficient in avoiding or effectively resolving the difficulties that the government may encounter. Even high-level officials in the government who commit acts that damage a nation's interests and attack human rights are unable to hide or escape investigation. Those responsible must pay for their actions.
With a dictatorship, however, all power is held by a small number of people. Without the monitoring and balancing functions used in the systems of Western countries, the person with highest authority can control everything, including playing tricks and setting up plots. This is exactly what Jiang Zemin is doing. Jiang, using the absolute power he has at his command, launched the suppression of Falun Gong, escalated the situation, set up harsh policies one by one, and pushed forward the brutal persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. No matter whether it was due to his extreme jealousy, or due to his fear of losing political power, the root purpose of Jiang's suppressing Falun Gong was to protect his absolute dictatorship. His choice of Falun Gong as a target of suppression was partly based on his belief that Falun Gong's over 70 million practitioners (kindhearted people who cultivate themselves according to the principles of "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance", people who don't hit back when they are beaten or cursed) would be easy to crush, since they wouldn't use violence to retaliate. Such an evil point of view is hard for many in the West to imagine and understand.
Cheng Qing: I think there is another issue, which is that Jiang himself is the very person who insisted on persecuting Falun Gong. At the beginning, even though all other members in the politburo did not agree with suppressing Falun Gong, Jiang overrode the decision and hijacked the resources of the entire nation to persecute Falun Gong. He used all aspects of society to spread the persecution, such as the political system, the economy, diplomacy, legislation, propaganda, culture, and the social system. The persecution is conducted at every level of society including nationwide organizations, factories and businesses, the military, workplaces, schools, hospitals, street committees and village officials. We could say that Jiang stirred up the entire nation to implement his policy to persecute Falun Gong.
Therefore, practitioners have sued the chief criminal, the one who is responsible for the persecution, using the legal system to stop the torture and bring the criminal to justice. This is absolutely right from the perspective of morality or conscience. Of course, top officials who acted to implement Jiang's orders to persecute Falun Gong on a broad scale have also been sued in different countries. Three of them have already received guilty verdicts.
Question 4: Will the lawsuit harm Sino-American relations?
Cheng Qing: The notion that the lawsuit against Jiang Zemin could harm Sino-US relations confuses the meaning of inter-country relationships. People who hold this notion actually define the Sino-US relationship as the Jiang Zemin-US relationship. Jiang's regime hopes to impose such a notion on the Chinese people as well as the international community. By doing so, Jiang and his gang think they can instigate hatred towards Falun Gong and deceive the people in China, and that they can thereby escape justice. Jiang's regime has been using diplomatic pressure and threats of economic sanctions to pressure the U.S. government to step in and halt the lawsuit.
What must be made clear is that the Sino-US relationship is the relationship between the Chinese people and the Americans. It is not some personal relationship between Jiang and the United States government. The Sino-US relationship is a relationship established through normal channels as set forth by the Chinese and United States Constitutions, as well as international conventions. It is supposed to benefit both the Chinese people and Americans.
Li Zhongming: Jiang has done numerous unpardonable bad deeds and he cannot represent the Chinese government, nor can he represent the interests of the Chinese people or the future of China. Jiang is a dictator, not an elected government leader. His persecution of Falun Gong is a result of his abuse of power and violation of Chinese Constitution and laws.
As someone pointed out from an article on Minghui.org, Jiang persecutes and kills innocent people. He does not have any immunity for killing and committing crimes. History will not pardon Jiang.
Ever since it's founding, the United States has been safeguarding freedom, human rights, and social commonwealth, which are the foundation of the spirit of the United States. After World War II, the United States became a role model for safeguarding international conventions and moral standards. It is the leader in safeguarding the environment in which the whole world is living. The moral and legal principles that the United States has been following should not be stained by economic interests. In the United States, presidents still in office may be sued. Why should a former Chinese president charged with genocide be allowed more privilege than US presidents and given immunity to ride above the law?
Cheng Qing: for a long time, the western world has been trying to help China to become a more civilized, more open and healthier country that cares more about its people's interests and can keep pace with the world in following international conventions. However, facts suggest that the difficulty in changing China's ideology far exceeds what civilized countries expect. All countries should fulfill their responsibilities as members of the international community. If China fails to fulfill its responsibility because of Jiang's abuse of power, the Chinese people and the international community would be the ones who ultimately get hurt.
Li Zhongming: you are right. In the face of the huge crisis of human rights abuse in China, the U.S. government should stand up to safeguard international human rights conventions, uphold justice and punish human rights offenders. Only by doing so can the U.S. government truly help China improve its current human rights situation and change its poor image in the international community, and make real progress and development. Only by doing so can China and the United States develop a long lasting relationship with each other. Such a relationship would then be truly healthy and beneficial to both countries and the international community as well. Compromising with the evil will only damage the bi-lateral relationship between China and the United States, as well as the international community.
Bringing Jiang to justice is the best response to genocide, torture and crimes against humanity and it is also the best safeguard of the international human rights conventions and mankind's moral standards and conscience. For the Chinese nation, the only way leading to a bright future is to return to the traditional moral standards and kindness inherent in human nature, and to rebuild the pure culture of respecting Heaven, cultivating the heart, and accumulating virtue.
With regard to the Falun Gong issue, the U.S. government not only is intimidated by Jiang's regime with diplomatic and economic interests, but it is also labeled by Jiang's regime as an anti-China force. All these are tricks played by Jiang to attempt to escape punishment and deceive the Chinese people and the international community.
Cheng Qing: Many Chinese people who still have a conscience have come to know the truth of Falun Gong and understand the evil nature of Jiang's crimes. At present, under pressure from Jiang's regime, they do not dare to voice their support for Falun Gong. However, this does not mean that they do not know right from wrong. They are observing the response from the international community including the United States. They hope that the international community follows the commonly agreed upon laws and moral standards, and brings Jiang to justice. In China, the call to bring Jiang to justice is on the upswing. The trial of Jiang in the court of morality and the human heart has begun.
Looking around the world, 25 lawsuits have been brought against Jiang and his accomplices. They are charged with torture, crime against humanity, genocide, etc. Jiang himself was sued in six countries including the United States. The global trend of bringing Jiang to justice has suggested that the genocide going on in China has received serious attention from the international legal community and human rights activists. Moreover, the international community has reached an agreement that such crimes must be brought to justice and the international community should work together to stop such crimes.
Li Zhongming: I think the U.S. government is clear that any compromise with the evil is a stain on the country's spirits, and will only allow the evil to run more rampant and harm the entire world, including the United States. Today, at this turning point in history, only by holding on to the spirit of the United States and international moral standards can the U.S. government make the correct choice: one that is good for China, good for the United States, and good for the whole world.
