They meditated in front of a banner displaying a message and illustrations. It hung on a garden wall on Munich's Romanstrasse, a quiet residential area with few pedestrians. The Chinese consulate is located across the street.
On July 20, 2006, several Munich residents held a commemorative event to recognize members of the Falun Gong movement who have already been persecuted for seven years.
These people wanted to raise an awareness not merely of the incidents of torture under the persecution, but also for the persecuted Falun Gong practitioners who are considered living organ banks incarcerated in various centers, detention facilities, forced labor camps, and prisons.
These practitioners are liable to have their organs removed on demand while alive and are then immediately cremated to destroy the evidence.
Two independent investigators from Canada, Mr. David Matas, attorney, and Mr. David Kilgour, former Canadian MP, have long since established the truth that these unimaginable crimes are being committed in China and have made their findings public.
Fined After Demonstration Permit Granted
Mr. Gang Chen, a software engineer living in Munich, had previously registered for a permit with the authorities and was granted permission to hold the quiet demonstration on Romanstrasse, with consideration for "diplomatic respect." The permit concerns diplomats who have "a right to be exempt from displays of differing opinions and value judgments. This remains in effect, even though the value judgments and accusations are valid."
The Chinese consulate is situated across the street. The police removed all placards and banners bearing any reference to "organ theft from living Falun Gong practitioners."
A few weeks later, Mr. Chen found a summons in his mailbox listing his punishment—30-day fine of 20 Euro (approximately US$27) per day or 20 days detention.
The Munich attorney general filed this accusation of Mr. Chen, "You have transgressed against [diplomatic] immunity by having used placards and banners as a means to raise awareness; the placards and banners' themes have dramatized unlawful removal of organs."
Reminder of 1989 Tiananmen Square
As a young student in 1989, Mr. Chen was witness to the incidents at Tiananmen Square in Beijing, when the tanks overran students "flat as postage stamps" who lay in the streets."
He does not accept guilt for the Munich incident. He can simply not comprehend that "Beijing's long arm" can prevent a peaceful demonstration here in Munich.
He is confident of the assistance he will receive from renowned attorney Hartmut Waechter, who will represent him on Jan. 29, 2007, at the Munich Civil Court in Numphenburger Strasse.
Mr. Chen's friends commented, "Innumerable individuals in China, who potentially are at present undergoing slaughter for their organs, are awaiting rescue. If we in the West no longer want to be an example for human rights, have we not then abandoned them?"
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