(Minghui.org) Mr. Li Lanqiang is a former mathematics teacher from the Haidian District middle school. He was tried by the Fangshan District Court in Beijing on October 13, 2016, after being illegally arrested on April 20, 2016.
The judge asked Mr. Li to identify himself and state the reason for his arrest. The judge then asked if he had been sentenced in the past.
“No,” said Mr. Li. “The forced labor camps were abolished. The persecution of Falun Gong was because of the arbitrary act by Jiang Zemin.”
The judge asked, “Were you detained in 1999, 2002, and 2004? Just say yes or no.”
Mr. Li responded, “What you are referring to were unlawful detentions. Thus, you cannot say that I have been sentenced. I cannot acknowledge the sentencing.”
Mr. Li's attorney interjected that the judge's question was not related to the identification process.
The judge adjourned the trial after Mr. Li asked that the prosecutor be recused, saying that the hearing would be resumed on a future date.
In August 2015, Mr. Li filed legal complaints against Jiang Zemin, the former head of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), who launched and directed the brutal persecution of Falun Gong.
Mr. Li was arrested by officers from the Fangshan Domestic Security Division and Gongchen Police Station on April 20, 2016. The police ransacked his place and confiscated Falun Gong books, printers, computers, and other personal belongings. He was taken to the Fangshan Detention Center.
Mr. Li went to Beijing to appeal for the right to practice Falun Gong in August 1999. He was arrested and detained for 15 days. He was removed from his teaching post and assigned as a gatekeeper.
He was taken to a brainwashing center in December 2001, where he was deprived of restroom use, beaten, and brainwashed. He was released after being held for 20 days.
Mr. Li was arrested in February 2002. The police ransacked his home and found some hand-copied Falun Gong books. He was given one-and-half years of forced labor without a trial. When asked for the reason, the police officer said, “You will be given forced labor as long as you practice Falun Gong.” Mr. Li asked for the legal basis. The officer replied, “We are just directed to give you a forced labor term. What can you do about it?”
Mr. Li was arrested in November 2004. The police gave him two-and-a-half years of forced labor without a trial, claiming he owned several Falun Gong informational discs. He appealed and filed a lawsuit. However, he was told that Falun Gong related cases would not be considered. He was taken to the forced labor camp and mistreated.
His school fired him while he was incarcerated in the labor camp and his wife divorced him.
In 1999 Jiang Zemin, as head of the CCP, overrode other Politburo standing committee members and launched the violent suppression of Falun Gong.
The persecution has led to the deaths of many Falun Gong practitioners over the past 17 years. More have been tortured for their belief and even killed for their organs. Jiang Zemin is directly responsible for the inception and continuation of the brutal persecution.
Under his personal direction, the CCP established an extralegal security organ, the “610 Office,” on June 10, 1999. This organization overrides police forces and the judicial system in carrying out Jiang's directive regarding Falun Gong: to ruin their reputations, cut off their financial resources, and destroy them physically.
Chinese law allows for citizens to be plaintiffs in criminal cases, and many practitioners are now exercising that right to file criminal complaints against the former dictator.