(Minghui.org) A retired police supervisor in Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province defended her innocence during a court hearing on August 12, 2020, for her faith in Falun Gong, an ancient spiritual and meditation discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Ms. Cheng Lan, 68, was arrested on August 29, 2019, for distributing informational materials about Falun Gong. She was indicted by the Xuanwu District Procuratorate on May 25, 2020. Three of her family members attended her hearing at the Xuanwu District Court.
Ms. Cheng was charged with “undermining law enforcement with a cult organization,” the standard pretext used by the Chinese courts to imprison Falun Gong practitioners. She questioned how her distributing information about Falun Gong could have undermined any law enforcement. She challenged the prosecutor to specify what law enforcement had allegedly been undermined by her and how. The prosecutor remained silent.
In her concluding remarks, Ms. Cheng, who acted as her own lawyer, said Falun Gong has now spread to over 80 countries in the world and received thousands of proclamations from numerous communities, but is only persecuted in its home country–China.
She said, “My honorable prosecutor and judge, I truly wish you can understand the facts about Falun Gong and don’t be deceived by the communist regime’s lies about Falun Gong. This is an important choice between good and evil. I hope you can stay away from the persecution, so that you won’t be held accountable as an accomplice in the future. I hope your final ruling of my case can withstand the test of time.”
The judge adjourned the hearing without issuing the verdict.