By Maureen Zebian
The Epoch Times
CHICAGO – More than a thousand people rallied on Federal Plaza in Chicago this week to gain public support for a civil lawsuit charging former Chinese president Jiang Zemin with the genocide of Falun Gong practitioners. They gathered across the street from the federal court where the fate of that lawsuit will be determined on Thursday.
Falun Gong practitioners came from across the U.S., Australia, Taiwan and elsewhere. The rally included a live exhibition “Persecution Meets Principle” to call attention to the plight of those in China. The exhibition offered graphic depictions of the torture methods used there against imprisoned Falun Gong practitioners.
According to Tony Liu, a researcher at the University of Chicago, “The peaceful meditation practice came under fire five years ago after becoming too popular for the jealous dictator Jiang who wanted to control people’s hearts.”
The exhibition coincides with a hearing scheduled May 27 to appeal decisions in the civil lawsuit Falun Gong practitioners filed in October of 2002. The court case was dismissed last year and plaintiff’s attorney Terri Marsh says, “Anyone who commits criminal or civil offenses can be sued in U.S. court…It undermines the dignity of our country to not allow a lawsuit like this to proceed.”
New Jersey resident Gang Chen took part in the exhibition and spoke at the rally. Chen was imprisoned in China for more than two years. He described being shocked by several high voltage electric batons simultaneously at the Tuanhe labor camp in Beijing: “It felt like my whole body was on fire and I was continuously being bitten by hundreds of snakes. This happened to me because I simply refused to give up Falun Gong peaceful meditation system.”
Federal Plaza sits on a busy downtown intersection. Passersby took time to explore the exhibition, which included posters, paintings, and live recreations of torture, such as a man crouched face down on the ground with his legs crossed and arms tied behind his back, a woman clamped to a wall with a doctor injecting psychotropic drugs into her arm, and a victim burned by the commonly used electric baton.
“It is an extremely powerful, poignant presentation that informs the public of the atrocities in China. Hopefully our government will take notice and do something effective to help these people,” said Christine Basick from Chicago.
Posting date: 27/May/2004
Original article date: 26/May/2004
Category: Media Report
