IDHAE World  bservatory for Defence Rights and attacks against lawyers

Beijing lawyers Li Chunfu (李春富) and Zhang Kai (张凯) were unreasonably questioned and beaten up by public security officers when they went to Jiangjin District of Chongqing Municipality to handle a case about the sudden death of a Falun Gong practitioner who was detained in a local Re-education Through Labour Camp. Lawyer Li’s hands suffered many scratches after being handcuffed and his ears had little bleeding after his face was slapped by the public security officers.

Both lawyers were brave to tell their experiences of being questioned and beaten up by the public security officers on their blogs after the incident

Lawyer Li Chunfu, from Beijing Globe Law Firm, and Lawyer Zhang Kai, from Beijing Yijia Law Firm, went to the home of Falun Gong practitioner Jiang Xiqing (江锡清), 66, in Jiangjin District of Chongqing Municipality to discuss with his two sons about the medical examination report concerning the sudden death of their father. Jiang suddenly died in a local Re-education Through Labour Camp on January 28 this year. The official report said the detainee died of a heart attack but the autopsy later found three broken ribs.

Zhang Kai and Li Chunfu  were investigating the suspicious death on behalf of the family of the deceased .After they have chatted for about two hours, four public security officers suddenly came to question the two lawyers and ask them to produce their identification cards.

Zhang Kai said that when he and Li were carrying out an investigation at the home of the deceased, several police suddenly burst in on the pretext of “checking identity cards.” Lawyer Li showed them his legal practicising license while Lawyer Zhang showed them his passport because he lost his identification card earlier. But the public security officers ignored their explanations.

The police then beat Zhang and Li, and brought them to the nearby police station where they were put in handcuffs and held until after midnight. Police searched their documents and computers. Zhang told the reporter he now has no feeling in his fingers.

At around 7pm on that day, about 20 public security officers suddenly came to forcibly take away the two lawyers. They were taken to the local police station. Lawyer Li was taken to a room where he was handcuffed to a cement divider. His wrists were scratched the handcuff’s gears and were bleeding. Two public security officers slapped his face for several times and made two written records of the interrogation. They also searched his luggage and computer. Lawyer Zhang was kicked into another room where his shoes and belt was forcibly put off. He was pushed into an iron cage and he was handcuffed during the 30-minute interrogation. His computer was searched and the officers made three written records of the interrogation. The officers also threatened Lawyer Zhang by warning him and Lawyer Li not to take up Jiang’s case. Lawyer Zhang later found that his hands were swollen and there were many scratches on his hands. He also felt pain on four fingers. Both Lawyer Li and Lawyer Zhang were only released at 12:40am. They both said they felt frightened, helpless and insulted.

Colleagues Protest in Beijing

A group of lawyers gathered in Beijing for a legal seminar held a protest against the beating of two of their colleagues in Chongqing. The protesting lawyers called for an investigation into the incident and for protection of lawyers’ rights.

The lawyers and academics attending the seminar spoke out against the behavior of the Chongqing Public Security officers. One professor from the Chinese University of Politics and Law said if

(See Lawyer Li’s account in Chinese: http://lcf10345.blog.sohu.com/116337828.html and Lawyer Zhang’s account in Chinese: http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_4c6e59110100cxfv.html).

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