"Radio Free Asia" reported on December 16 that practitioners of Belgian nationality recently appealed to the European Court of Human Rights in the hope that the court would accept their case to file charges against the former Chinese president Jiang Zemin. Below is the report from RFA reporter Jiadai Wang:

The European Court of Human Rights is part of the EU and is situated at Strasbourg in France. Earlier this year, the Falun Gong Association brought a case before the Belgian court, charging Jiang for genocide for his role in the persecution of Falun Gong. But in July this year, the Belgian court changed its laws for suing people for genocide, making it stricter than before. The law now states that only those with Belgian nationality can sue someone for genocide [in Belgium]. The lawsuit must also be accredited internationally. Following the changes in the law, the Belgian court dismissed the case in October and this is when practitioners appealed to the European Court of Human Rights.

So, what is society's understanding regarding the case against Jiang?

On December 16, RFA reported that Professor Hongda Qiu, from the Marine Land University in America, said that the European Court of Human Rights was established for appeals as a result of the conventions of human rights. An appeal to the European Court of Human Rights can only be accepted when a just result from the initial court has not been received.

Reports say that Professor Qiu criticized the persecution of Falun Gong as a "wrongdoing." He also said that Jiang's "evil cult" law cannot apply to Falun Gong because it was made after Falun Gong came to the public.

Reports also say that Professor Liyu Yang commented that the tactics Falun Gong practitioners use in their lawsuits are to awaken people's misunderstandings of Falun Gong. A report quotes a Falun Gong practitioner saying, "Through court procedures, Falun Gong will reveal the crimes of the persecution against its practitioners.

Source: http://www.clearharmony.net/articles/200312/16860.html