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Lawyers and Rights Defenders
2011/02/02
Human Rights Lawyer who Defended Falun Gong Beaten in Chinese Prison
A human rights lawyer from northeast China who was sentenced in November 2009 to seven years in prison for taking Falun Gong practitioners as clients has been beaten and held in solitary confinement, sources inside China have told the Falun Dafa Information Center.
2010/03/14
Falun Gong Practitioner Cited in Gao Zhisheng Letter Dies from Torture in Custody
An elderly Falun Gong practitioner, who was cited as a torture victim by prominent attorney Gao Zhisheng in an open letter to China’s leaders, died in January due to injuries incurred in custody, the Falun Dafa Information Center recently learned. Ms. Liu Lihua (刘丽华), 61, is the second of Gao’s interviewees known to have subsequently died from abuse in custody. Gao himself has been “disappeared” by Chinese security forces since February 2009.
2009/12/01
Chinese Human Rights Lawyer Sentenced to Seven Years in Prison for Defending Falun Gong
A human rights lawyer from northeast China was sentenced on November 27 to seven years in prison for taking Falun Gong practitioners as clients and presenting legal arguments that the Chinese Communist Party’s campaign against the spiritual practice is illegal under Chinese law.
2009/11/18
Spanish Court Indicts Top Communist Party Officials for Torture, Genocide of Falun Gong
In an unprecedented decision, a Spanish judge has indicted five high-ranking Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials for their role in crimes of torture and genocide committed against Falun Gong practitioners. Among the defendants is former CCP head Jiang Zemin, widely acknowledged as the chief instigator of the campaign to “eradicate” the spiritual practice.
2009/02/14
Brutal Torture and Disappearance of Renowned Attorney Demands a Clear International Response
Chinese security forces’ severe torture and disappearance of leading human rights lawyer and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Gao Zhisheng highlights the life-threatening danger facing Falun Gong adherents and those who come to their defense in China and must prompt a strong international response, the Falun Dafa Information Center said Thursday.
2009/02/11
Fueled by Olympics, Falun Gong Persecution Escalated Sharply in 2008
The Communist Party’s campaign against Falun Gong escalated sharply in 2008 as China’s rulers took advantage of the Olympic games to catalyze and justify the large-scale arrest, imprisonment, and monitoring of Chinese citizens known to adhere to the spiritual practice, the Falun Dafa Information Center said in an annual report published on Tuesday.