Defense attorney loses his own case in Chongqing
Epoch Times 23/2/10
In the Chongqing First Intermediate Court a criminal defense attorney learned the hard way one of the basic unwritten rules of China’s legal system: don’t get involved in a political case. His sudden fall helps illustrate the progress of China toward adopting the rule of law.
Chongqing, a large city in southwestern China, is one of four provincial-level municipalities in China (meaning that the city itself has the status of a province). It is ruled by Party Secretary Bo Xilai, who in June 2009 launched a campaign called “hitting the black.” The state-run media describes the campaign as targeting organized crime and corruption, but it in fact is a political campaign, one that Bo Xilai launched to try to boost his career.
Beijing-based defense lawyer Li Zhuang was brought to Chongqing by the family of an alleged gangster named Gong Gangmo to defend him. On Dec. 13, however, Li himself was arrested on charges of having falsified evidence and obstructed justice in his attempt to defend Gong. In particular, Li was charged with having advised Gong to claim falsely that he had been tortured into confessing.
At his trial, Li asserted his innocence and even said he was willing to give up his freedom if in doing so he would help further the rule of law in China.
