【禁聞】劉萍案庭審千警維穩 律師遭解聘

【新唐人2013年10月30日訊】江西新余「新公民運動」活躍人士:劉萍、魏忠平和李思華,素有「新余三君子」之稱,他們三人由於要求官員公開財產、並聲援被捕異議人士,被控涉嫌「非法集會」等罪名。28號,新余市渝水區法院開庭審理,但三名被告當庭解除了對辯護律師的委託書,以示對法院「非法行為」的抗議,案件押後再審。因中共動用上千警力抓捕或軟禁聲援的民眾,以及為難辯護律師,國際輿論也給予強烈關注。

據了解,美國、加拿大和歐盟的駐華使團負責人權事務的官員,28號上午也前往新余法院表達關注,但被警方攔截在警戒線外,無法進入法庭。

28號晚10點多,江西新余維權人士劉萍、魏忠平、李思華等三名被告的六名辯護律師:張雪忠、鄭建偉、陳光武、劉金濱、龐琨、李金星,針對開庭情況發表聲明說:由於法官違法行為,律師的辯護工作已無法起到應有的作用,因此三名被告當庭解除對我們的辯護委託。合議庭宣佈休庭,給被告人15天時間,重新委託辯護律師。

「新余三君子」辯護律師之一龐琨:「主要是當事人認為法庭不能保證律師的權力,律師沒有辦法正常的履行職務,法庭威脅律師,當事人解除了委託,要重新聘請律師。」

劉萍女兒廖敏月表示,六名律師當庭指出,法院超期羈押三名被告涉嫌違法,要求合議庭法官迴避,但遭到拒絕,而且,法官的態度惡劣,多次打斷律師的發言。

江西新余維權人士劉萍女兒廖敏月:「他們現在不讓我的律師說話,再開下去對這個案件只有害而無利,所有的律師舉手示意都不讓律師說話,這種庭還有甚麼好開的?」

今年4月,劉萍三人因在劉萍家中舉標語拍照,要求當局釋放被關押的新公民運動人士,後來又因舉牌要求官員公開財產,被中共逮捕,三人分別被控以「非法集會罪」、「擾亂公共場所秩序罪」及「利用邪教組織破壞法律實施罪」。

三人被抓後,引來中國網民的聲援。開庭前一週,中國各地已經有聲援者陸續被當地警方警告不得前往新余市。

不過仍有大批聲援者不顧警方阻撓前往。在途中,網友遭遇上千警力的圍追堵截,網民「秀才江湖」、「公民小彪」、「劉沙沙」、「楊匡」等數人被警方抓捕關押,28號晚才被陸續放出。

27號提前一天前往新余聲援劉萍案的網民「公民小彪」說,有朋友告訴他,新余當局提前一週就開始戒嚴,火車站、汽車站到處都設有關卡。

網民「公民小彪」:「我們防止意外為了安全,我們就在新余隔壁城市那個宜春,坐車就坐到宜春,設卡的交警就查車,每臺車都要查,每個人都要檢查身份證,然後我們在第一個關口,他們登記身份證,只是登記一下,我們就覺得很僥倖。」

不過,當「公民小彪」等網友剛到新余市郊區,過第二個關卡時,就被警察攔截抓捕,並把他們送到當地派出所,關押22小時後才放出。

網民「秀才江湖」:「27日下午,我和龐琨律師,當事人李思華的代理律師,龐琨律師,我和他一起從深圳過來的,在公交車上,準備去賓館的路上,就被他們控制了,把我帶到派出所。」

「秀才江湖」被關押20多個小時後,被國保送回原籍浙江長興縣。龐琨也受到了不同程度的騷擾。26號在深圳時,龐琨就曾被當地公安扣押3個小時,並責令他不要到新余為當事人辯護。

庭審當天,陳光武、鄭建偉、李金星等辯護律師在法庭外被法警檢查律師證。而劉萍的證人劉喜梅在庭審前更被警方以「擾亂公共秩序」行政拘留﹔新余一批維權人士鄒桂琴、黃慧敏等也被限制人身自由。

28號,律師李方平發微博說:小小新余,驚動全國安保,目前了解到已經超過十個省市在聯動維穩。他認為,當局在江西新余這個偏遠的地方,審判新公民運動的成員是有意試探民間的反應。

採訪編輯/李韻 後製/陳建銘


Lawyers for Members of New Citizens Movement Dismissed During Trial

Liu Ping, Wei Zhongping and Li Sihua are members
of the New Citizens Movement, Xinyu, Jiangxi Province.
They are known as "Xinyu's three noble characters".

They are known for urging disclosure of officials
assets, and supporting detained activists.
The three were accused of "illegal assembly".

On October 28, Yushui District
Court in Xinyu City opened the trial.
All three dismissed their lawyers in court, in order to protest
the court's illegal behavior. The hearing was adjourned.
Meanwhile the regime dispatched thousands of police to
arrest their supporters, or place them under house arrest.
The regime also made the lawyers' defense difficult
in court, and the case has drawn attention globally.

Sources indicate that human rights officers from Embassies
including the US, Canada and European Union countries,
went to Xinyu court on October 28, but were refused entry.

At 10pm, the six lawyers of the three
defendants issued a statement.
Because of the judges' illegal behaviors,
the lawyers are unable to fulfill their role.
Thus, the three defendants have dismissed their lawyers.

The collegial panel announced the trial was adjourned,
and gave the defendants 15 days to re-hire lawyers.

Pang Kun, defense lawyer: "Because the defendants
understood that the court can't guarantee lawyers' rights,
lawyers can't play their role, and were threatened in court.

Thus the defendants dismissed them,
and they need to hire lawyers again."

Liu Ping's daughter Liao Minyue
spoke about what happened in court.
The six lawyers told the court that it illegally
extended the detention of the three defendants.
The lawyers requested the judges of the collegial
panel to step back, but their request was denied.
The judge's attitude was very bad,
interrupting lawyers speeches many times.

Liao Minyue: "The judge didn't allow the lawyers to
speak, so it wasn't any good to carry on with the trial.
When our lawyers raised their hands to
make points, the judge ignored them.
What is the point of carrying on with such a trial?"

In April, the three activists took photos holding placards.

They were requesting the regime to release
members of the New Citizens Movement.
They also urged the disclosure of officials'
assets, and were subsequently arrested.
The three defendants were separately accused of
"illegal assembly", "disturbing public order" and
"using an evil cult to undermine law enforcement".

After their detention, netizens gave them much support.

One week before the hearing, some supporters received
a warning from the local police not to go to Xinju City.

However, many supporters ignored the warning.

They traveled to Xinyu City, but
were stopped by thousands of police.
Netizen "Xiucai Jianghu", "Citizen Xiaobiao",
"Liu Shasha" and "Yang Kuang" were arrested.
They were successively released
on the evening of October 28.

Netizen "Citizen Xiaobiao" went
to Xinyu City, a day before the trial.
He says that a friend told him the regime placed
heavy security in Xinyu one week before the trial.
The train stations and bus stations
were equipped with checkpoints.

Netizen "Citizen Xiaobiao": "For our safety, we
got off the bus at Yichun which is next to Xinyu City.
The traffic police started checking
every bus, and every passenger's ID.
They wrote down our ID at the first checkpoint.
They just wrote it down, so we were lucky."

When "Citzen Xiaobiao" and other netizens arrived
in Xinyu's rural area, there was a second checkpoint.
The police detained them at a local police
station, and they were released after 22 hours.

Netizen "Xiucai Jianghu": "On the afternoon of October
27, lawyer Pang Kun and I took a bus from Shenzhen.
We were detained on the bus on the way to
the hotel, and they took us to a police station."

"Xiucai Jianghu" was held for more than 20 hours.

Domestic Security Division personnel then sent him
back to his hometown in Changxing County, Zhejiang.
Pang Kun was also harassed.

On October 26, in Shenzhen, Pang was
detained for three hours by local police.
The police told him not to go to Xinyu to defend activists.

The police checked Cheng Guangwu and
other lawyers' practice licenses outside court.
Liu Ping's witness, Liu Ximei was detained before
the trial on allegations of "disturbing public order".
Freedom of activists in Xinyu was restricted,
including Zou Guiqin and Huang Huimin.

On October 28, lawyer Li Fangping wrote on Weibo:
The regime used national security
forces to deal with small Xinyu.
It understood that tens of provinces are maintaining stability.

Li says that the regime held a hearing of members
of the New Citizens Movement in Xinyu, a remote
place, and it intended to test people's reaction.