Justice Upheld in Munich, Germany (Photos)

By a practitioner in Germany

(Clearwisdom.net) On the afternoon of October 5, 2007, a hearing was conducted in the Bavarian Middle Court in Munich, Germany. The charges involved Falun Gong practitioners protesting in front of Chinese General Consulate in Munich. During the proceedings, the Munich Procuratorate withdrew all charges against practitioner Chen Gang and paid all the legal fees, including the defendant's legal fees. The Munich Procuratorate also guaranteed it would not interfere with similar peaceful protests in front of Chinese General Consulate by Falun Gong practitioners.

On July 20, 2006, practitioners reenacted the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s organ removal from living Falun Gong practitioners to expose the atrocities

On July 20, 2006, practitioners protested the CCP's persecution of Falun Gong

Chen Gang and his lawyer in the Bavarian Middle Court after the Procuratorate withdrew charges

Chen Gang's lawyer being interviewed by a Bavarian Radio Broadcasting Station

On July 20, 2006, Falun Gong practitioners in southern Germany held a peaceful protest against the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) seven-year-long brutal persecution of Falun Gong, in front of the Chinese General Consulate in Munich. The practitioners got a permit for this event beforehand. At that time, the CCP's atrocities of organ removal from living Falun Gong practitioners had just recently been exposed. The practitioners held a banner that read, "CCP's Final Solution for Falun Gong Practitioners - Kill Them Through Live Organ Harvesting for Lucrative Profit" and set up posters exposing the atrocities. They also set up a mock operating table to reenact the CCP's live organ removals. Photos of Falun Gong practitioners who were tortured to death were also displayed.The banners and photos apparently irritated the CCP, and not long after they was displayed, Munich police came to ask the practitioners to take down the banner, using the excuse that it was insulting to the Chinese diplomats. Other banners were allowed to remain.

The practitioners believe that the CCP's live organ removals is a fact and a crime against humanity. The protest was against the CCP's atrocities of live organ removals but not against the staff in the consulate. Thus they did not agree to take the banner down. The coordinator of the activity, Chen Gang, was therefore charged by the Munich Procuratorate with "not recognizing the rights of diplomats."

The incident was covered by many media in Munich. Each Bavaria State Parliament member received a letter explaining the incident from Falun Gong practitioners' perspective. Many German people condemned the CCP's atrocities of organ harvesting and criticized the Munich Procuratorate. Many people believe that because Bavaria is the richest state in Germany and has a large amount of trade with China--more than most countries in the world--that due to economic interests, some politicians in Bavaria were afraid of the CCP.

The Coalition to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong (CIPFG), consisting of lawyers, scholars, and politicians from around the world, paid close attention to this incident. Directors of CIPFG delegations in Australia, Asia, and North America wrote to the German Chancellor and Foreign Minister, asking that they pay attention to this lawsuit and the CCP's atrocities of live organ removals. In addition, the lawsuit caught the attention of the authors of the "Report into Allegations of Organ Harvesting of Falun Gong Practitioners in China," David Matas, international human rights lawyer, and David Kilgour, former Secretary of State (Asia-Pacific) for Canada. In April 2007, the German International Human Rights Organization invited them to Germany. They said the incident was regrettable and called on Germany to properly handle it. Mr. Matas made a special trip to Munich and gave a seminar on the CCP's live organ removals, providing details of all the evidence. A force for justice gathered in Munich.

In the Bavarian Middle Court, the judge said that the CCP's live organ harvesting is not a new concept to Germans, since the Nazis conducted genocide against the Jews. The procurator also admitted that Falun Gong practitioners had conducted righteous activities. German media, the Bavaria Radio Broadcasting Station, conducted a live interview with Chen Gang and his lawyer, Mr. Wachtler, in the Bavarian Middle Court. Mr. Wächtler said, "It is unacceptable for the CCP to kill Falun Gong practitioners like animals just because they have a different belief." Several other media also covered the court proceedings.

The lawsuit concluded with the Munich Procuratorate withdrawing the charges against practitioner Chen Gang and paying all costs of the proceedings. The Munich Procuratorate also guaranteed it would not interfere with similar peaceful protests in front of Chinese General Consulate by Falun Gong practitioners.

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2007/10/7/164093.html

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