(Clearwisdom.net) On July 20, 1999, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) initiated a comprehensive campaign of persecution against Falun Gong. This brutal persecution has continued for more than ten years at this point. Since the beginning, this persecution has been illegal in every sense.

1. Persecution that Goes Against Humanity is Fundamentally Illegal

During the Nuremberg trials more than sixty years ago, all of the war criminals employed the defense that they were "executing the existing law." Hitler had systematically set up laws to carry out his genocide against the Jewish population. He segregated them using legal designations, cut off their means to make a living, and eventually drove them into concentration camps to be exterminated. The judges at Nuremberg quickly rejected this defense, however. They concluded that the atrocities committed by these war criminals did not amount to carrying out the law, but rather crimes against humanity. These laws in fact directly led to crimes against humanity, the trampling of human rights, and demeaning human dignity, ultimately resulting in genocide. Thus, these were not considered legitimate laws. In a different time and set of circumstances, those carrying out the persecution of Falun Gong are doing much the same thing.

2. The Persecution is Destroying Human Morality

One of the things that allowed the Holocaust to happen was the de-humanization of the Jewish community by the Nazi regime. It first created the illusion that a part of the human race, the Jewish community, was sub-human and separate from the rest of humanity, which made mass murder possible. The Chinese Communist Party's strategy is to create a culture that is increasingly reliant upon money and material wealth, sacrificing faith and human rights in the process. By separating the Chinese people from their traditional values, it is creating a tragedy in the form of lost fundamental human morality.

Ignoring for the moment the tactical actions taken by the CCP during the persecution, one of its strategic goals is to wipe out those who believe in the principles of "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance," values that go directly against the greed-driven, atheist culture espoused by the CCP. In the process of carrying out this persecution, the CCP has not only committed crimes against the direct victims of the persecution, but also against those who have been swept up in its destruction of morality.

3. The CCP's Rule Itself is Illegitimate

Throughout history, it has been the responsibility of any ruling body, whether it came to power by conquest or democratic election, to bring prosperity and virtue to those whom it governs, and therein lies its mandate to remain in power. However, the CCP has clearly violated that mandate. As the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party states, the Communist Party stands for all that is wicked and destructive, and since it took power in China, it has caused the deaths of at least 80 million Chinese people. During its persecution of Falun Gong, it has positioned itself in direct opposition to the principles of "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance." This type of regime, whether one looks at it from a spiritual, cultural, or legal perspective, is one that has lost its legal mandate. More specifically, its policies to stamp out "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance" are also illegal.

4. How do the CCP's Legal and Legislative Processes Compare to the Product of Modern Countries' Legitimate Processes?

In most countries, the legal framework consists of a constitution, criminal laws, civil laws, commercial laws, administrative laws, and other components. For most democratic countries, a parliament or congress is in charge of legislation. China has the People's Congress to establish or amend the Constitution and associated laws, and the court system to interpret and enforce the laws. However, in the Chinese regime, these and related organs are not independent bodies, but rather extensions and tools of the CCP. The 610 Office established by Jiang Zemin specifically to persecute Falun Gong was given power to override all other government organs in carrying out its purpose. It is quite telling that in persecuting Falun Gong, the 610 Office is able to ignore specific provisions of the Chinese Constitution granting freedom of belief and assembly, use the legal system to pronounce practitioners guilty of arbitrarily assigned offenses, and then sentence them to prison, forced labor camps, and even mental institutions.

To be continued...