[Hong Kong, August 31, 2003] Four Swiss Falun Gong practitioners are appealing to a Hong Kong court for their right to peacefully express themselves.

On March 14, 2002, these four Swiss citizens joined 12 Hong Kong residents by sitting in front of Beijing's Liason Office in Hong Kong to appeal for the return of Falun Gong practitioners' human rights in Mainland China. They were, however, forcefully taken away by police and were found "blocking traffic" by a local court. This conviction was seen to come out of pressure from Beijing to silence the protest activities by the Falun Gong group, which is legal in Hong Kong. The photo provided by the press does not seem to suggest any interference for pavement traffic, says a human rights lawyer.