CHARLES LI – BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY

Charles Li, a U.S. Citizen from California, was detained at Guangzhou Airport shortly after landing in China on January 22 2003. He was then transferred approximately 1,000 miles away to the Yangzhou Detention Centre in Jiangsu Province. Two days later, Chinese authorities officially notified the U.S. consulate in Shanghai, saying Charles will be charged with sabotaging TV and/or radio equipment. These charges are completely false and are being used by the Jiang regime to hide the fact that Charles Li is being persecuted because he practises Falun Gong.

At the end of March 2003, the Jiang regime staged a “show trial” where they sentenced Charles Li to 3 years imprisonment. Just like the millions of other Falun Gong practitioners being persecuted in China, Charles Li stood no chance of being given a fair trial. China’s legal system does not represent the will of the citizens but is instead another weapon of systematic persecution used as a club to strike at innocent people.

Falun Gong practitioners all over the world have been working hard to rescue Charles Li, through activities such as contacting their government representatives, collecting signatures and informing people about this violation of the human rights of an American citizen. Freedom of belief is an inalienable human right, and the Chinese government’s behaviour in arresting Charles Li is unacceptable. After hearing of Charles Li’s arrest, government leaders, human rights groups, and many others have stepped forward for his urgent rescue. The illegal and unjust actions of the Jiang regime cannot be hidden from the world.