Hills Street Times (Australia) Reports an Australian Couple Asking Help in Rescuing Family Members Who are Imprisoned in China for Practicing Falun Gong

Keiasha Naidoo

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2002

A Carlingford couple is pleading wit Australian authorities to help obtain the release of a family member detained in a Chinese labor camp for being a Falun Gong practitioner.

Richard Chen and Cecelia Ou fear for the lives of Mr. Chen's older brother who has been imprisoned for almost two years.

In the past two months, the couple's fears have increased.

A distraught Mr. Chen said, "I saw on the internet that three people have been tortured to death in the same labor camp where my brother is.

"Now I am terrified for his life." he said.

His older brother Chen Ruichange was arrested by Chinese police on December 23, 2000.

"He was taken without any legal arrest warrant," said Mr. Chen.

He said [...] Falun Gong [is] practiced in 60 countries but banned only in China.

According to the professional couple who have lived in Australia for more than 10 years, Mr. Chen Ruichang's wife Liang Zhihui was also arrested and the couple's 15-year-old son left to fend for himself.

The teenager was taken in by his maternal grandparents. A year later, Ms. [Liang] was released temporarily so she could take care of her son. "At least the boy has his mother with him now, but she has already been told that she will face further sentencing (it could be up to 15 years). We are also very troubled because for the last three months she has not been allowed to see her husband."

"Everyone is terrified that he might be harmed because there is just no contact at all," Mr. Chen said.

The Carlingford couple are now writing to Federal and State MPs to appeal to Chinese authorities to release Mr. Chen Ruichang.

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