The Hindu : Trial of sect members begins in Hong Kong

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jun 18, 2002

International

International

Trial of sect members begins in Hong Kong

HONG KONG JUNE 17. Prosecutors brought stiffer charges on Monday against six Falun Gong practitioners arrested at a demonstration outside the Chinese Government liaison office here — as Hong Kong's first-ever criminal trial against followers of the sect opened.

Sixteen Falun Gong adherents — including four Swiss nationals — are being tried for public obstruction following the sidewalk protest in March outside a government building. The case has raised concerns that Hong Kong is slowly squeezing freedoms guaranteed to its citizens after its reversion to Chinese sovereignty five years ago. Falun Gong is legal in the former British colony but banned as an "evil sect" by authorities in mainland China.

On the first day of the trial, prosecutors accused six of the Falun Gong followers of obstructing police who tried to move them away from the entrance of the Chinese office on March 14. Previously, three other demonstrators had been charged with that crime, which carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison. The nine facing that charge are all Hong Kong Chinese.

All 16 defendants have been charged with two counts of public obstruction — with the lesser of the offences carrying up to three months in prison or a fine of $64.

Prosecutor Robert Lee said in his opening statement that police repeatedly asked the demonstrators to move a few steps away from the entrance of the liaison office before scuffles broke out. Mr. Lee later played video footage that showed the Falun Gong followers quarrelling and struggling with police who were putting them into vans.

The video also showed police warning the demonstrators to move their protest. Three are also accused of assaulting police officers who broke up the protest on March 14. The scuffle caused minor injuries to seven officers and nine demonstrators, the prosecutor said. In a statement read to journalists before the trial started, the Falun Gong followers said that they were confident about their case. It was impossible to believe that "our small, polite and peaceful appeal" had run afoul in a civilized society like Hong Kong, said Erich Bachmann from Switzerland. — AP

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