China, vice president of forensic medicine resigns over abuse of trial evidence
Beijing (AsiaNews) - After having
tried "in vain" to change the situation, the vice president of Chinese Forensic Medicine
Association has resigned in opposition to the
"misconduct" of forensic experts during trials deemed "sensitive"
by authorities. Wang
Xuemei, 57 (see photo), rose to prominence nationwide for having criticized
both the investigation into the death of Neil Heywood - the British businessman
killed by Bo Xilai's wife - and the murder of a 20 year old in Beijing.
The
academic posted a video online to explain her motives. She said she felt
"disappointed" with the professional conduct of the mainland's
forensic medical community but felt obliged to step down as she "could not
change the current situation". The
decision came on the eve of trial brought by the mother of Ma Yue, who is suing
the Xicheng police and the district government. According
to the woman, the investigators were "intentionally misleading" in
the case of the death of her son, who was killed at the age of 20 by an
"electric shock" while he was in the Gulou Dajie subway station in
Beijing.
Wang, who worked as a consultant
for the Supreme People's Procuratorate, said that the tests conducted by her colleagues
in the case were "ridiculous and irresponsible". Wang said in her video that, although she had
no access to evidence presented by the police, her years of experience
convinced her that the cause of Ma's death was not the same as the authorities
claimed". Similarly,
the doctor had rebelled against the claims submitted by pathologists in the
case of Neil Heywood: according to doctors the man was poisoned by cyanide,
while Wang said he "died from asphyxiation. If Heywood had indeed been killed by cyanide,
forensic experts sent to the scene would have immediately noticed obvious
symptoms such as discolouration of the corpse. They have made false declarations to protect the
politicians involved in the case. "
This
is the second time in the last month that important members of Chinese society have
rebelled in front of interference by the Communist Party and its government in the
national legislature. On
14 August, a group of more than 100 industrial executive wrote to demand real action
to counter pollution instead of the (currently before Parliament) law that sets
new fines against those who damage the environment, but allows only the state to denounce
the guilty.
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