And finally,
Shelley convinced me to go for
a little trip outside the studio.
I learned about a massive legal action so big
it could affect the course of China’s future.
Also, we got to stop at Cracker Barrel.
A summer road trip with the China Uncensored gang!
We’re headed down to beautiful, sunny...
Wait, where are we going again?
Washington, D.C.
Great.
Everyone’s along for the ride!
Our producer Matt, myself, Shelley,
our summer intern Noah,
and our cameraman Allen.
Wait, who’s driving the car?!
Are we there yet?
After a grueling trip,
we finally made it to the nation’s capital.
Shelley’s promised me
that we're here to cover a big story.
I can't wait.
So where’s the big story?
This is the big story.
This is the big story?
This is the big story.
It’s...another Falun Gong parade?!
No.
This is a rally.
Also, what’s wrong with that?
Okay, I know we cover Falun Gong a lot,
because it’s the biggest human rights crisis
in China.
But look, Shelley...
they’re SO BORING!
Whaaat?
Look at them!
Peacefully meditating,
peacefully holding banners,
peacefully handing out flyers.
I bet I couldn’t even get a single one of them
to throw a single brick
through the window of the Chinese Embassy!
Is that...a bad thing?
It’s a boring thing.
So I guess you’re not interested
in one of the biggest stories today
that no one else is talking about.
Tell me more.
Suing a former world leader.
Bush or Clinton?
Neither.
China’s former leader:
Jiang Zemin.
Shelley.
We’ve talked about this.
Toadatron 2000.
You want to call the guy
who ordered the torture and killing
of all of those people
Toadatron 2000.
Yes.
Toadatron 2000.
Fine.
Toadatron 2000.
So Falun Gong practitioners
are suing Toadatron 2000.
Technically, they’re filing criminal complaints.
The difference is…
These aren’t civil lawsuits.
They’re legal complaints filed under Article 108
of China’s Criminal Procedure Law.
This explanation is going to be boring, isn’t it?
Very.
The Criminal Procedure Law states that
Chinese citizens can bring a case
against a criminal suspect
by filing a complaint that shows
how they were victimized by the suspect.
On May 1, 2015,
the Supreme People’s Court issued new guidelines
that require authorities to accept
all criminal complaints.
What were they doing before?
Throwing out the ones they didn’t like?
Yes.
I was joking.
I know.
But it’s true.
Falun Gong practitioners began submitting
these criminal complaints against Jiang---
Toadatron 2000
to the Supreme People’s Court
and the Supreme People’s Procuratorate.
More than 200,000 so far.
The procuratorate.
They’re responsible for investigating
and prosecuting cases.
To be honest,
I’m not sure I got all of that.
Maybe this will help.
I’m a complaint
Yes, I’m just a complaint
And I’m sitting here at the Supreme People’s Procuratorate
It took a lot of courage
for someone to go and send me
But I might be used by Xi
to purge his longtime enemy
Yes, my case could bring Jiang down someday
At least if rule of law has its say,
but today I remain a complaint
Gee, criminal complaint,
you sure have a lot of patience and courage.
Well, I got this far.
Before, they would have just thrown me out.
You see, everything written in me
shows how former Chinese leader Jiang Zemin
broke specific parts of China’s criminal law
when he ordered the persecution of Falun Gong.
And if I actually become a part
of a criminal case someday,
then that will show that China
really does have rule of law.
Yeah, that was much clearer.
But what happened at the end?We ran out of the animation budget.
But you get the point.
Yes, I do.
The point is: power.
Former former leader Jiang Zemin
used the persecution of Falun Gong
to set the table to his liking.
And former leader Hu Jintao
had no choice but to eat off those plates.
But when Xi Jinping came to power,
he started to...remove those plates.
And these criminal complaints,
this pile of evidence of Jiang’s wrongdoings,
that could help Xi turn the table over,
once and for all.
The question is, will it?
Chris, do you want to meet someone
who’s filed a criminal complaint?It would be an honor and a privilege.
Why are you talking like that?
Talking like what?
I met William Huang.
While he was getting his Ph.D in Engineering
from Tsinghua University,
he was arrested for practicing Falun Gong.
In 2015,
he filed a complaint against Jiang.
So what was in the criminal complaint?
So in this criminal complaint I described
what I experienced—
the torture I experienced in the jail
during that five years.
We were forced to do
the slave labor every day,
at least sixteen-hour days in a small cell
and all the products we made,
like plastic flowers for decoration,
also the Christmas tree line chain.
When I came to the USA,
I saw exactly the products
we made in the labor camp.
Also, you know,
once the police used over ten
high-voltage electric batons
to shock me at the same time.
My whole body just shattering—
almost died—
and I feel very bad.
And they deprived of sleep totally from me
for a whole month.
They wanted to brainwash me
and force me to give up my belief.
So you were very much a victim
of the Chinese legal system.
Why are you trying to use the legal system
by filing a complaint?
Even based on the constitution,
you know, they said Chinese citizens
should have freedom of religion,
freedom of belief.
But in fact, not.
In fact, it’s the Communist Party
and then-leader Jiang Zemin—
he violates their own laws.
So I can use their law to file
the criminal [complaint] against them.
I mean, don’t you ever just want to just
go to the Chinese Embassy and throw
a brick through the window?
No, no, absolutely not.
Because Falun Gong, you know,
we are very peaceful people.
Yes, peaceful.
Right.
I know, very peaceful.
They’ve been very peaceful all day.
No violence at all.
Ok, so I feel like I understand why
someone would file a complaint.
But still,
does it really have a greater significance?
Why don’t you ask Freedom House?
I don’t know...
It’s air-conditioned.
Lead the way.
So how does one file a criminal complaint
against Jiang Zemin inside of China?
So the way most people are doing it right now
is they’re doing it by mail, basically.
And people write up the complaint
and put it in a package and will send it off.
So Falun Gong practitioners in China,
they’re dealing with horrible crimes against humanity
by essentially filing paperwork?
Um, yes.
So what is the impact
these criminal complaints are having?
“I think there’s the immediate
and what might be the long-term.
I think a lot of people filing the complaints
are thinking about the long-term.
They’re thinking, ‘There’s going to be a day
when there is either rule of law in China
or some of the political vendettas
and factions in the Communist Party
create the political environment where
Jiang Zemin could actually be prosecuted
for his role in launching the persecution
against Falun Gong.
When that time comes,
we want the prosecutors to be ready
and the have the information they need
about all of these crimes that were committed
and to have that historical record.’
So I think potentially you could see in the future
that having a real impact from that perspective.
I think in the immediate-term
there’s other kinds of impacts.
It potentially has an impact on people
working inside the system.
And some of the plaintiffs that we interviewed said,
‘Look, one of reasons I sent this complaint
is that I really hope that the person
who reads it at the central procuratorate
is going to see this and realize,
“Wow, this is really what’s going on
in the persecution and campaign
against Falun Gong.”
And maybe if they have a request to participate,
they won’t participate in the future.’
So I think that’s certainly—
that kind of changing of hearts and minds
of people in the system
is also one of the things motivating
the people filing the complaints.”
You know, Shelley, I really respect
Falun Gong practitioners more now.
You don’t think they’re boring anymore?
Oh no, they’re still really boring.
They are literally fighting the Chinese Communist Party
by filing paperwork.
That is ridiculously boring.
But you know what?
I underestimated boring.
Boring might look boring,
but it’s not even though it is.
Boring is eating your way
through a box of cereal to get
to the prize at the bottom.
Boring is sitting through
the entire credits of a movie
just for the hope there's
a bonus scene at the end.
Boring is driving four hours
down to Washington DC with a broken radio
to make this episode.
Boring is writing out a 23-page criminal complaint
that will help take down one of history’s
most brutal leaders.
Boring can change the world.
So Falun Gong is boring,
but in a good way.
Yeah,
also they have a pretty sweet marching band.
Thanks for watching this episode of China Uncensored.
Once again, I’m your host Chris Chappell.
See you next time.
Gee, I sure learned a lot on today’s episode!
Yeah, and you could have watched it
five days earlier.
China Uncensored puts full-length episodes
on its website every Friday afternoon.
ChinaUncensored.tv!
Uh...this is kind of a weird conversation.