By practitioners from Japan

(Clearwisdom.net) On the afternoon of August 19, the "Support Committee to Rescue Yoko" held a press conference at the Bunkyo Borough Center in Tokyo. Mr. Atsushi Kaneko, who just returned to Japan from China, confirmed that his wife Luo Rong, (Japanese name: Yoko Kaneko) who is wrongfully imprisoned in a forced labor re-education camp in Beijing, has been suffering every kind of physical and mental torture. She has lost significant weight and is not in her right mind. The Support Committee Chairman delivered an urgent appeal to the media and people from all walks of life in Japan to pay attention to Ms. Yoko Kaneko's desperate situation and to make all attempts to rescue her.

The Support Committee Chairman pointed out, that according to International Laws and the Chinese Constitution, the Jiang Zemin regime's brutal persecution of Falun Gong is illegal. According to criminal laws, the authorities following the Jiang regime misuse their authority to inhumanly torture Falun Gong practitioners wrongfully imprisoned in forced labor re-education camps.

During the press conference, Mr. Atsushi Kaneko described the sad meeting with his wife Luo Rong (Japanese name, Yoko Kaneko) in a forced labor re-education camp in Beijing. He sincerely appealed to all kind-hearted people from Japan and the entire world to give more support.

On August 12, Mr. Atsushi Kaneko went to China in person to request the authorities to unconditionally release his wife Yoko. On August 15, Atsushi met his wife Yoko in the Daxing County Female Forced Labor Re-education Camp in Beijing. The meeting was in the presence of eight Chinese government officials and a supervisor of the labor camp. Their conversation was only allowed using Chinese (A Chinese staff member from the Chinese Embassy in Japan handled the interpretation.) Contents of the conversation were rigorously restricted. Topics related to Falun Gong and the support for Yoko from the international community and Japanese public were completely forbidden. Mr. Kaneko wanted to give his wife an opportunity to sign the appeal against her imprisonment, but it was not allowed due to the strict rules of the visit.

As for Yoko's current situation, Mr. Atsushi Kaneko said, she was obviously extremely weak. She looked to have lost 10 kilograms. Both of her wrists were black and blue. A few days before, Yoko suddenly fainted when her elder sister visited her. Later she was sent to a hospital for treatment for 4 days. Her blood pressure reached 220. Mr. Atsushi Kaneko said, according to what he had seen and heard, it can be confirmed that the report from China and posted on Clearwisdom Net, describing the tortures Yoko has been suffering, is true. He also said, currently, Yoko is not in her right mind. She seemed to be an entirely different person. He worried that if Yoko would be continuously suffering the physical and mental tortures, she would suffer schizophrenia or even die from the abuse she has received.

Mr. Atsushi Kaneko also exposed the Jiang regime's duplicity and hypocrisy regarding the Yoko Kaneko issue. Accompanied by Japanese Embassy officials, Mr. Atsushi Kaneko submitted an appeal against the imprisonment of Yoko to the forced labor re-education administration committee of the Beijing municipal government. According to international laws, the Chinese Constitution and the labor re-education regulation, he proposed this appeal, pointing out that it is completely illegal to imprison Yoko. The imprisonment violates human rights. He requested that the Chinese authorities immediately release Yoko. At the same time, the appeal also mentioned the support from the international community and expressed the wishes that the Chinese government would handle things in a rational and sincere way. However, it is a pity that the Chinese authorities refused the appeal with the reason that Yoko Kaneko's proxy and signature were not provided. Later, upon Japanese Embassy officials' request and a promise to submit Yoko's proxy and signature, the authorities agreed to temporarily keep the appeal. Before Mr. Atsushi Kaneko went to China, the Chinese authorities had used multiple means attempting to prevent the appeal submission.

At the press conference, Mr. Atsushi Kaneko expressed his appreciation to Mr. Makino Seishuu, chairman of the "Non-Partisan Alliance to Rescue Yoko Kaneko" and other members of the House of Representatives. He thanked them for helping to bring about this opportunity to meet his wife.

A reporter asked the Chairman of the "Support Committee to Rescue Yoko", "The Jiang regime never corrects their error even if they become aware of it. As Chairman of the 'Support Committee to Rescue Yoko', what are you planning to do?" The Chairman said that they would collect petition signatures more widely and would submit an appeal in September when the Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs visits China.

Many media came to conduct interviews.

Before the press conference, we obtained some moving news from Yoko's Japanese home, Sado. To rescue Yoko Kaneko and let her return home as soon as possible, Assemblyman Mr. Hamachi Cho formed the "Hamachi Cho Support Committee to Rescue Yoko". The banner displayed before the press conference read, "Wish from Sado: Yoko, Return Home Soon! Hamachi Cho Support Committee."

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2002/8/21/35318.html