BEIJING, July 20 (Reuters) - China has put on trial five followers of the Falun Gong spiritual movement for their alleged role in a fiery group suicide attempt at Tiananmen Square in January, the Beijing Daily reported on Friday.
Those who went on trial on Thursday for "using an evil cult to organise a homicide" included a survivor of the Chinese New Year's Eve self-immolations that resulted in two deaths.
The Beijing First Intermediate People's Court heard the case of survivor Wang Jindong, as well as four others who were accused of plotting the fiery January 23 suicide attempt by five alleged Falun Gong adherents, the newspaper said.
One woman died shortly after the self-immolations and her 12-year old daughter died seven weeks later. The badly burned girl was the centrepiece of a government campaign to discredit Falun Gong and its U.S.-based leader Li Hongzhi.
Falun Gong, which is based on elements of Taoism, Buddhism and traditional Chinese meditation and exercises, has denied that the five self-immolators belonged to the movement.
The group says it does not condone suicide.
On Sunday, China marks the second anniversary of its ban on Falun Gong, which it says is an "evil cult" that cheats its members and is responsible for the deaths of 1,800 people by suicide or refusing medical treatment.
China's two-year battle with the spiritual group it banned in 1999 has sparked international concern about abuse of religious freedom and civil liberties.
Since Falun Gong was banned, tens of thousands of followers have been detained for protesting in Tiananmen Square.
Human rights groups say thousands of members are in labour camps and at least 200 have died of abuse in police custody.