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France: Falun Gong Practitioners Initiate Legal Action Against Head of China's "610 Office" Li Lanqing

Dec. 10, 2002

(Clearwisdom.net) On October 4, Falun Gong practitioners in France initiated legal action against the head of China's "610 Office," Li Lanqing. The "610 Office" is the primary above-the-law agency through which the Jiang regime carries out its state-run terrorism campaign against Falun Gong practitioners.

Four Falun Gong practitioners from France, Ireland and Canada, through well-known human rights lawyers Georges-Henri Beauthier (France) and William Bourdon (Belgium), launched legal action against Li Lanqing, who is also China's First Vice President and a former member of the Chinese Communist Party's Standing Committee. The charges are for the cruel torture of Falun Gong practitioners in China. The four plaintiffs are French citizen Irena Petty, French resident Chen Zhu-mei, Ireland resident Zhao Ming and Canadian resident Wang Yu-zhi.

Recently, Li Lanqing paid an informal visit to France and departed on October 4. The "610 Office" headed by Li Lanqing is similar to the "Central Cultural Revolution Commission" during the time of the Cultural Revolution in the late 1960's and early 1970's. It is an organization empowered with special authority over national and local government agencies, party units, public security offices, courts, labor camps, national security offices and the mass media in China. It is the headquarters established to systematically carry out the persecution of Falun Gong. This agency is responsible for orders to the police to target Falun Gong practitioners with torture, sexual abuse and even murder. Furthermore, the "610 Office" also instructed local governments to establish compulsory "brainwashing classes" for Falun Gong practitioners who persist in their beliefs. The emergence of the "610 Office" has destroyed the Chinese legal system.

Noted human rights lawyer Georges-Henri Beauthier said that legal action against Chinese government officials who abuse human rights will not stop here, as the work will continue until a number of these officials are brought to justice. He also told reporters that his clients are decent people rather than members of some sect, and this fact should be reported accurately.

During the past three plus years, Falun Gong practitioners around the world have been enduring the Jiang regime's cruel persecution, but they have persisted in protesting the evil persecution with peace, rationality and determined forbearance. This is the first case of Chinese officials responsible for persecuting Falun Gong practitioners having been legally accused in Europe, attracting the attention of those in the European legal and human rights circles. This case may set a precedent, leading to legal action against any Chinese official responsible for or participating in the persecution whenever they enter Europe on non-state visits.