Ma Ping is a foreign businesswoman came to Tianjin to invest. One day in October 1999£¬the corporative representative of an industry company Zhang Shi Li on behalf of Bank of China, Tianjin Kai Xuan Men Branch, attracted Ma Ping¡¯s company to deposit money. They promised her as long as Ma Ping deposit money in the bank for one year£¬they would give her a higher interest rate£¬as it was toward the end of the year£¬the bank need necessary amount of deposit. (boxun.com)

Ma Ping considered that it is safe to deposit money in Bank of China£¬and should choose the bank with higher interest rate. On October 27 1999, She took a check of RMB 20 million to Tianjin Kai Xuan Men Branch to inquire about deposit business£¬when branch director Yang Zhaoyuan came£¬saying with passion£º¡°Welcome you£¬Mrs MA£¬to deposit in our branch£¬we will offer good service to you. ¡± And later, Ma Ping has deposited her RMB 20 million in Bank of China, Tianjin Kai Xuan Men Branch for one year.

On December 29£¬1999£¬Ma Ping deposited another RMB 20 million in the Bank of China, Tianjin Kai Xuan Men Branch for one year. On January 4£¬2000£¬ Ma Ping deposit RMB 15 million in the same bank for one year. In this way£¬Ma Ping had deposited altogether RMB 55 million.

A year later£¬on November 23, 2000£¬Ma Ping and Zhang Mu went to withdraw their first mature RMB 20 million£¬the staff of the bank Yang Jianfeng told the couple: ¡°You cannot withdraw the money£¬it has been mortgaged.¡±

Ma Ping asked: ¡°Whom of you used my money£¿¡±

Yang Jianfeng answered: ¡°Nothing can be informed.¡±

Ma Ping asked Yang Jianfeng: ¡°In what name can you have my money mortgaged£¿I am going to accuse you .¡±

Yang Jianfeng said in a hurry£º¡°Can I just spare you a minute£¬and look for Branch Director Yang Zhaoyuan for you.¡±

Yang Jianfeng came out then. As soon as Zhang Mu saw Yang Zhaoyuan£¬he wanted dressing him down nearly, said to Yang Zhaoyuan£º¡°We deposited our money here£¬who have you mortgaged our money for£¿¡±

Yang Zhaoyuan answered£º¡°Brother£¬I am sorry to have betrayed your trust in me£¬I mean¡­¡­¡±

Zhang Mu interrupted him£º¡°No chance for verbiage£¬I will refer the case to the security authorities.¡± As the two parties argued£¬Yang Jianfeng phoned the police at the same time. And the police officer Zhang Xiaoyi from Tianjin police station came to the bank. The couple reported what had happened to him£¬asking for the establishment of the case, the evidence of mortgage formalities£¬and ask for the authenticating£¬sealing the accounts of the branch up for keeping¡±. That was Friday.

On Sunday evening£¬Ma Ping couple received telephone call from Yang Jianfeng£¬noticing them to get their deposit in Tianjin with identification.

The next day£¬Ma Ping couple came to the office of Bank of China, He Ping Branch to visit the manager Hao Baoshan£¬who also hold the position of vice president of Bank of China, Tianjin Branch, with complete identification for withdrawing deposit£¬The dialogue is as follows£º

Hao Baoshan said to Ma Ping couple£º¡°Mrs Ma£¬It is impossible for you to withdraw the deposit now£¬I admit that the mortgage is not done by you£¬but if you could help me to change the false mortgage and help me to bail out some people instead£¬I promise to return your deposit within three months.

Ma Ping asked£º¡°How will you give it to me£¿¡±

Hao Baoshan said£º¡°They have bought a piece of land with the money£¬we plan to mortgage it to my friend£¬a leader of Agriculture Bank£¬and then return the money to you. Thus I have been protected£¬as well as some others.¡±

Ma Ping was very angry at the request£¬and she refused£º¡°President Hao£¬I am not stupid enough to do so. All I ask is my money£¬if you do not give back my money today, I will take legal action. ¡±

Hao Baoshan answered coldly£º¡°Mrs Ma£¬then£¬you can¡¯t get your money back. With my relations in Tianjin for decades, not only you can not get the money, but also you will have trouble......¡±

Ma Ping said: ¡°Let us see. I do not believe we can not find justice in this world.¡±

The Ma Ping couple referred it to the 17th division of Tianjin PSB specializing in monetary defrauding on the same day and the seal of the bank on the couple¡¯s bank savings passbook was sent to Tianjin Evidence Verifying Center by Tianjin PSB (public security bureau). Several days later, Tianjin PSB notice Ma Ping : ¡°that seal for mortgage was fake. You have to keep your seal well now. We have already reported to the head of our bureau. The case would immediately set up and the criminals would soon be arrested.¡±

Two days later, Tianjin PSB noticed the couple to withdraw their deposit. However when the couple arrived in Tianjin PSB, the couple were told that deposit couldn¡¯t be withdrawn, because a certain leader from Tianjin politics and law commission signed and forbid them to do so.

Ma Ping got angry to see her deposit was frozen. Then wrote a letter to Premier Zhu Rongji and told her misfortune to him. Zhu rongji wrote instructions on this matter and instructed her to meet Yang haiwang, then Secretary of National Finance and Industrial Commission. Mr Yang asked her to meet Liu Mingkang, then head of Bank of China, at that time. But, Tianjin part still refused to pay her back.

After case was set up, Tianjin PSB asked PSB legal system department to demonstrate this case. They drew conclusion that the couple was innocent. The leader of Tianjin PSB was very angry and said ¡°the leaders of Bank of China, Tianjin branch were very unreasonable. ¡± However, under the control of a leader from politics and law commission, Tianjin PSB couldn¡¯t unfreeze the couple¡¯s deposit.

In fact, Zhang Shili colluded with Yang zhaoyuan to cheat bank for lump sum of money by forging seal of the bank. In October 2000, Zhan Shili was sentenced to life imprisonment and Yang Zhaoyuang was sentenced to a fixed-term imprisonment of 8 years by Tianjin judicial institute.

Zheng TianRen was a reporter of Asia Weekly at that time. On hearing the case of Ma Ping, he interviewed Zhang Lichang, Secretary of Tianjin Committee of Chinese Communist Party.

Here are the two questions he asked:

1. Ma Ping is a foreigner, she deposited money in your bank, a victim, and your staff of the bank committed a crime against her interest, why her deposit is frozen?

2. Secretary Zhang, have you ever thought about the influence may have in foreign investors?

Zhang Lichang refused to answer the questions.

On September 6, 2001, Zhou Jian from 17th division of Tianjin PSB noticed Ma Ping couple to fetch her deposit in Tianjin. The next day Ma Ping went there herself alone. Seeing only one of the couple came, policemen there said nothing can be done, without Zhang Mu. So Zhang Mu managed to get 17th division of Tianjin PSB.

After being trapped to Tianjin, Ma Ping and Zhang Mu were arrested ¡°suspicious of illegal lending money with high interest rate¡±.

Ma Ping was hence detained for 7 months and 23 days illegally. On April 30£¬2002£¬the certain leader of politics and law committee in Tianjin interfered the matter and instructed the First Intermediate Court of Tianjin to identify Ma Ping and Zhang Mu to be guilty. She was sentenced to a fixed-term imprisonment of 6 years£¬Zhang Mu was sentenced to a fixed-term imprisonment of 3 years£¬the appending punishment for him is to be exiled after serving the sentence. The total penal sum for them is RMB 41.1 million.

This adjudge is not only a strike to the defendants£¬and their families as well as for the counsel for the defendants£¬but also an astonishment for the experts and scholars who teach and study in the criminal law circle for decades. Too absurd£¡Ma Ping and Zhang Mu were not convinced and appealed to the People¡¯s High Court of Tianjin. It was accepted and heard on May 23, 2002, and held the court on September 23 the same year.

During the period, the counsel for the defendants gathered three times the most authorized experts in the criminal law circle to get the argumentation on wheather the couple be guilty accused by the prosecuting part£¬among them are Gao Minxuan, Ma Kechang, Zhao Bingzhi, Yang Dengxian, Chen Xingliang, Wang Zuofu, Gan Mingxiu, Zhao Shujie, Zhou Zhenxiang, Cao Zidan. The cognizance shows instead of being guilty, the couple are the victims of the trespass group.

The first instance has attracted the attention of Australian government£¬they gave the note to the Chinese Supreme Court£¬the latter transferred the records from Tianjin High Court to Beijing, established a special case group which was taken by vice president of the Chinese Supreme Court who was in charge of criminal affairs. The group carried out examination on the case. It lasted more than 5 months. The final cognizance is that the couple are innocent£¡The group also gave its decision back to Tianjin High Court in February, 2003.

Despite all that, Tianjin High Court under the instruction of a certain leader of politics and law committee£¬challenged the decision of Chinese Supreme Court£¬and asked latter to have the case re-examined. Chinese Supreme Court changed the personnel and did it again. This process lasted two months and reached the same result. Hence Tianjin High Court was asked to quicken the pace. However£¬forcefully interfered by a certain leader of politics and law committee£¬Tianjin High Court had not taken any action until May 19, 2004. Because of that another year went by.

According to the Criminal Law of the People¡¯s Republic of China£¬the hearing of Ma Ping case has gone beyond legal time limit. She had been detained for as long as over two years and 3 months£¬has not settled yet. During the period£¬she had been suffered planned savage torture physically and mentally£¡Such a long over detaining to the suspicious by Tianjin High Court is a serious commitment of infringement crime of human rights. Tianjin High Court has never explained anything to Ma Ping or to her counsel£¬this was a serious human rights infringement of the Australian Ma Ping.

The Australian embassy has negotiated with note many times with China Foreign Affair Ministry£¬Tianjin foreign affair office£¬while the latter boggled: ¡°We handle the case according to Chinese law.¡± But they could not produce any files or relevant gist. In August 2003£¬when Premier Howard visited China, and in October 2003£¬when President HU Jingtao visited Australia£¬The Foreign Affair Ministry of both parties negotiated on the case£¬the couple unconditional released on December 9 2003.

If it were not for the many times¡¯ joint proclamation of the Supreme Court, the Supreme Procuratorate, and Ministry of Public Security, which instructed local judicatory institutes to stop and liquidate the case over detaining or interrogating, the illegal dereliction of duty of Tianjin Justice Department would continue£¬which was a great challenge to the call of China leader: ¡°to manage state affairs comply with law and constitution¡±.

On May 19, 2004, the leader of politics and law committee again instruct Tianjin Supreme Court to make the final judgement on case of Ma Ping, she was sentenced to a fixed-term imprisonment of 6 years£¬and the total penal sum is RMB 19 million, Zhang Mu was sentenced to a fixed-term imprisonment of 3 years, the probation is three years, the total penal sum for him is RMB 15.2 million.

Tianjin Supreme Court has made an absurd adjudge under the instruction of a certain leader of politics and law committee of Tianjin, which is of subreption and self-contradiction¡£

Now£¬Ma Ping was unjustified exiled to Australia, her husband stayed in China and is forbidden to leave China back to Australia to reunite with his wife, 3-year-old daughter of Ma Ping forced to stay in China, too, unable to live together with her mother. The family is torn apart. And Tianjin justice authorities completely lost their basic humanism.

¡ª¡ªAn innocent Australian citizen be prosecuted in Tianjin

Author: LIN MA, an Australian designer of architecture

Telephone number£º(0061) 414-752012

The media across the planet including Chinese media are focusing on how the American soldiers abused Iraq prisoners. The strong reaction to the event stimulates me greatly£¬reminding me of the cruel persecution of my sister Ma Ping by Tianjin PSB(Public Security Bureau).

My sister had been invested in Tianjin for years with RMB thousands of million. A certain leader of politics and law committee, in order to take possession of RMB 55 million deposit of my sister¡¯s, trapped and arrested my sister by an absurd excuse. Here is the story.

On September 6, 2001£¬Zhou Jian, a policeman of 17th division of Tianjin PSB gave notice to my sister, asking her go to the division to get her personal deposit illegally frozen for as long as one year. The next day, my sister and her husband together with their lawyer arrived there, only to find that their nightmare began ever since.

Tianjin PSB announced arresting and detaining of the couple right away, hand and feet cuffed, Ma Ping was sent to Tianjin He Dong District jail immediately.

According to the Chinese law, only the suspect being sentenced to death penalty will wear cuffs on feet, while Ma Ping is of no suspicion at all. The violation of law of Tianjin PSB shows a planned persecution has long been made by a certain leader of politics and law committee.

Before she went in the cell, the warder forced her to take off all her own clothing, changed the prisoner¡¯s uniform on, and then put her into a cell for drug addicts, killers and spoliator and prostitutes.

It was dark, cold and wet, no more than 12 square meters, and the cell has more than 30 female prisoners packed tightly in such a space. It was impossible for them to sit or lie down but to stand next to each other.

Before the keeper Shut Ma Ping in, she said to those criminals: ¡°Here comes a foreigner, take good care of her.¡± Astonished by the ¡°foreigner¡±, the criminals commented on her: ¡°How does such a beauty be a criminal?¡± ¡°Pretty, are you an actress?¡± ¡°Have you offended any officials?¡±

Curiosity is one thing, shortly after satisfying it, they soon start practicing ¡°the first compulsory lesson¡± for any new comer: Striped off all her clothes, pushed her into the toilet, pressed her down on toilet floor, some hit her with fist, some kicked her, some even poured urine onto her, and even with droppings. She has been ravaged for the first time in her life. Ma Ping has been tortured in this way, she could do nothing except screaming, crying, begging.

In order to stop them, bearing acute pain, she opened her blood-dripping mouth, begging: ¡°please, please stop, I have just in the tenth month after giving birth to a baby, still breast feeding; if I die, my baby will have no mother all the rest of her life.¡±

The female prisoners didn¡¯t listen to her at all, kept on what were doing, Ma Ping struggled to stand on her feet, then on her kneels, begging them to stop bullying her and promised to give them what they want after she get out of the prison. Ma Ping explained to them that she was innocent, only a foreigner came to invest in China, and told them that the reason why she was put into jail was that someone tries to take possession of her deposit in the bank. She emphasized again: ¡°My ten-month-old baby in my family in Beijing is still waiting for my milk, tonight the child has nothing to live on; if I die, the baby will have no mother all the rest of her life.¡±

At the night, they stopped Ma Ping from eating or drinking. After supper, a drug addict called Xiao Juan and a moll Xiao Wei said: ¡°Feel like doing it!¡± followed by the torture, ignoring Ma Ping¡¯s begging. MA PING was in serious condition, in despair, she struggled to stand on her feet and hit her head toward the equipment edge of the heating system at the side of the wall to end her life. However£¬without success. On the contrary£¬she got wounded£¬blood was bleeding£¬till today Ma Ping has got a scar at her forehead.

During the night£¬Ma Ping went away due to too much blood lost£¬ lying on the cold solid cement floor together with other five prisoners. The cell was dim£¬with no ventilation and the rotten smell mixed with the smell of cigarette£¬it is the most unbearable place in the world.

In the jail£¬Ma Ping has experienced the same torture of the first 14 days£¬during which period Ma Ping cut herself on the waist to commit suicide£»hang herself using the strips made of the bed sheet£»all of these ended with no success. Every time after that the keeper would made her wear a special cuff£¬and would deprived her from sleeping for three days, special instrument of torture nearly can take one¡¯s life: Once wear it, if hand moves its teeth will prick the hands to a certain depth until the person faints way.

After unsuccessful suicide of many times, she answered to the warder when asked the reason of doing so: ¡°It is prosecution of the prisoners that made me do so in desperation. To die is better than to be alive.¡±At this the warders never did anything to stop the prisoners from prosecution.

Everyday when it is getting dark, a female prisoner enjoying scratching others, wound cram sleeping with Ma Ping scratching with her long nails at her on neck, breast for many times. The neck of Ma Ping was bruised; her vessel miss cut narrowly, countless scars on her. Instead of regulating the prisoner who abused her, the ward asked Ma Ping to adjust herself to the life in the jail.

Suffering for 14 days in the cell, Ma Ping¡¯s hair came off a lot, lost three teeth, nearly cried to blind, and could not see beyond 1 meter, become doltish. Fifteen days later, consulate of the Australian embassy in Beijing and me as family member went to see my sister Ma Ping in jail. Before visiting, the warder ordered her to write a report declaring that her teeth fallen naturally instead of being knocked off and should she refuse to do so, she would unable to see us. In order to have a chance to see her family members and government officials of her own country, she wrote the declaration at last. Despite of that, they allowed for only ten-minute visiting.

Having covered a long distance from Australia to Tianjin, I saw astonished my sister in a wreck; I could hardly believe my eyes: my beautiful young sister had been tortured into such a person! I stepped up embracing her crying together for few minutes, with the Counselor tears in her eyes nearby. Our Counsellor and I asked in our mind: What was it anyway? However, before our visit, the head of the jail forbid my sister to say any truth to the visitors.

My sister told me afterward that before our meeting, her feet had been bare; the head had a pair of shoes bought with money of my sister¡¯s upon hearing our coming visit.

Our Counsellor has protested on the prosecution by Tianjin judicial authority, two months later, the police moved my sister to another jail, during these two months before the move Ma Ping had never had any meat, fruit and vegetables in her diet, the only thing is steamed corn bread.

The forewoman made Ma Ping work 18 hours a day, stick-making all sorts of balls and plastic material with toxic industrious glue! Her face, eyes, noses, ears had been exerted gradually there. In less than a month she was nearly bald, lost her sight, her respiratory system got contaminated, which has lasted for one year!

Their cell was solid packed with some thirty people, working, sleeping, eating, shitting in the same area, the environment was extremely disgusting.

Probably elude by the official, one day in February they put Ma Ping into a cell together with an amok named Zhang Qing who murdered a few people. One midnight, she thrust her chain onto Ma Ping shouted: I will strangle you! Before I die, plus one! It was the head of the warders who intend to have Ma Ping strangled. Ma Ping¡¯s face strangled blue and purple, nearly died. Having seen the process, the head of the warders smeared her intending to commit suicide, had she wore the special cuff again.

After 8-months detained in the jail, she was almost destroyed. Because of the protest of embassy of Australia, Ma Ping was sent to hospital one day in May, 2002. She had injections, which made her have temperature for as long as four months, have blood in her stool, have to lie in bed all day long. She still has some eyelets on her leg. She was not allowed to write letters to prevent her from revealing the truth to the outside world.

When Ma Ping met her own lawyer, she was carried in a special chair for criminals; she can¡¯t walk, and is withered and yellow.

While detained in the jail£¬she fasted twice£¬to protest the persecution. each time it lasted 7 to 8 days She had been deprived of the right of shower£¬communicating with other prisoners while other prisoners could£¬even her quilt send by her friend could not reach her.

During the period while Ma Ping was detained£¬there was another tragedy. Her 10-month old baby has no relative in China any more to look after it£¬her grandpa died of heart attack stimulated by the detaining of the couple£¬its grandma paralysis.

Thus the baby cried and cried until her vocal cord broke. The child is three years old now. Till today she can not speak£¬let alone to sing.

In the 2-year and 3-months days in the jails£¬Ma Ping had been suffered physically and mentally£¬bore with the great pressure£¬thought about her baby£¬parents£¬her billions of investment. Every day seemed a year to her. She was released after the visit to Australia of President Hu Jingtao. It was already five months since the free of the couples£¬the case has not yet been justified£¬and the official intend to do it once again.

In jails£¬the keeper talk with Ma Ping: ¡°Do you know the reason why we detain you£¿¡±

Ma Ping: ¡°No .¡±

The keeper: ¡°Do you want to be bailed out£¿

Ma Ping: ¡°Yes.¡±

Ma Ping understood the intention of the detaining now.

Ma Ping: ¡°Then how much do I need if I am bailed out?¡±

The keeper: ¡°RMB 20 millions for bailing out! ¡±

In order to get freedom as soon as possible£¬she agreed£¬the total expense was 21 millions£¡

After they paid, Ma Ping¡¯s husband was bailed out, while Tianjin Public Security Bureau betrayed its promise and continued to detain Ma Ping. Under the interference from certain a leader of Tianjin Politics and law committee, she was later sentenced to a fixed-term imprisonment of 6 years£¬RMB 21 millions has not returned till today.

So far the intention of the certain leader from Tianjin politics law committee to illegally take possession of Ma Ping¡¯s huge sum of money by means of judicial circumvention came to light.

Today the media across the planet unanimously accused the soldiers of US Army of their abuse of Iraq prisoners. What I want to say is that there is more serious abuse outside Iraq which has not been revealed. Is it all the more extraordinary the abuse of Ma Ping in Tianjin than that of US£¿What is more important is that it involved ramp and toxication£¬the fatal damage is both mentally and physically.

The well-known previous writer, author of Gouglas islands said at the Nobel Prize awarding ceremony: ¡°A true statement weigh more than that of the earth!¡± Today I tell the world about the truth of persecution of Ma Ping£¬my purpose is to hope that the weight of justice will prevent the future happening of the similar tragedy.

I believe that it might happen to everyone, the cost they paid¡ª¡ªthe blood Ma Ping bleed , voice lost of the baby¡ª¡ªnot paid only for herself, but for every foreign business person who came to China to invest.

To contact Ma Ping at 0064-1475-2012

May 12, 2004

Sydney, Australia (boxun.com)