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Chinese court revokes rights lawyers¡¦
licenses
AFP , BEIJING
Sunday, May 09, 2010, Page 4
China has revoked the attorney¡¦s licenses of two human rights lawyers who
defended a follower of the banned Falun Gong spiritual group, in a case that has
caused concern among rights groups.
Beijing city justice authorities said the action was taken against lawyers Tang
Jitian (ð¦N¥Ð) and Liu Wei (¼BÄÞ) for ¡§disrupting court order and interfering with
the normal conduct of litigation activities.¡¨
The announcement was posted late on Friday on the Web site of the Beijing
Municipal Bureau of Justice.
Legal experts have said previously the license revocation could be a first for
China and it comes amid increasing concern by rights group over what they say is
a wide official clampdown on human rights lawyers.
The accusations arose after the two represented a practitioner of Falun Gong ¡X
the spiritual movement labeled as an illegal, ¡§evil¡¨ cult in China ¡X in April
last year in Sichuan Province.
The lawyers walked out of the courtroom after deciding they could no longer
execute their defense because of constant interruption by the judge, who was
apparently being directed by a man in the courtroom using eye contact, Tang said
previously.
In a statement released yesterday, Human Rights in China said Tang told the New
York-based rights group that judge Li Xudong (§õ¦°ªF) allowed an unidentified
observer to videotape the proceedings in violation of court rules.
Li also pounded the gavel loudly during their defense statements, interrupting
them more than ten times.
Neither of the lawyers could be immediately reached for comment yesterday.
Sharon Hom, Human Rights in China¡¦s (HRIC) executive director, called the
decision ¡§a mockery of justice and the rule of law.¡¨
¡§HRIC urges the relevant authorities to review and adjudicate the case with
impartiality and fairness,¡¨ she said in the group¡¦s statement.
Falun Gong is an extremely sensitive issue for Beijing.
China¡¦s government banned the group after thousands of practitioners silently
converged in Beijing to air their grievances over alleged persecution, showing
their organizational might.
Rights groups say its members have been imprisoned and tortured, while the group
itself issues regular reports of members dying in police custody.
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