Zhang said that Bo had instructed Chongqing National Security Bureau to set up a special task force to investigate Rao, and that Bo used this as a major steppingstone before the 2008 Beijing Olympics to boost his political position.
On July 9, 2008, Rao was summoned by Chongqing National Security Bureau. On Nov. 18, at a secret trial, Rao was sentenced along with another man named Chen Xiaofeng, who was accused of publishing the articles on behalf of Rao. They both appealed, but on Jan. 19, 2009, the Chongqing High Court upheld the original sentence, and the two men were sent to Yuzhou Prison.
Zhang said that Rao’s case was widely known within the circle of Chongqing officials, since Rao was a key young cadre with a promising future in the Chongqing PLAC system. Yet a heavy sentence was imposed on him.
Zhang also said the arrests and trial in the Rao case were completely secret. “The authorities threatened his family and lawyer. There was absolutely no report on this case by domestic media.”
Rao’s father, 72-year-old Rao Jingjiang, has been making appeals on behalf of his son for the past several years. He also stated on his microblog that he is proud of his son.
“Bo Xilai acted above the law. There is no [Chinese] law that forbids people criticizing Party leaders or giving them suggestions. I will seek justice for my son to the end,” Rao Jingjiang told The Epoch Times.
On July 30 Zhang accompanied Rao Jingjiang to the Chongqing High Court to file another complaint. A Chongqing High Court judge eventually agreed to accept the filing, but did not say when Rao might expect a reply.
Bo Xilai had a reputation of getting rid of political rivals and critics under the guise of ridding Chongqing of corruption and crime. He was ousted in March of this year after Wang Lijun, the former police chief and deputy mayor of Chongqing, and Bo’s right-hand man, sought refuge from Bo’s reprisal at the American consulate in Chengdu, unleashing the biggest political scandal in China’s recent history.
Bo’s wife Gu Kailai has been accused of the murder of British businessman Neil Heywood, an associate of the Bo family.
Editor’s Note: When Chongqing’s former top cop, Wang Lijun, fled for his life to the U.S. Consulate in Chengdu on Feb. 6, he set in motion a political storm that has not subsided. The battle behind the scenes turns on what stance officials take toward the persecution of Falun Gong. The faction with bloody hands—the officials former CCP head Jiang Zemin promoted in order to carry out the persecution—is seeking to avoid accountability for their crimes and to continue the campaign. Other officials are refusing any longer to participate in the persecution. Events present a clear choice to the officials and citizens of China, as well as people around the world: either support or oppose the persecution of Falun Gong. History will record the choice each person makes.
Read the original Chinese article.
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