A City Harvest Church member pens this letter to the church, as he looks back on the past two weeks when six of its leaders were on trial.

A City Harvest Church member pens this letter to the church, as he looks back on the past two weeks when six of its leaders were on trial.

Dear Friends,We’ve come to the end of six days, the first tranche, of the trial.City Harvest Church: our people and our ministries have, in these six days, crossed over to come into full view of the public eye.And we are still the church that we’ve always been. Twenty-four years have prepared us well for this.

PRAYING & FASTING

We’ve prayed incessantly. We’ve fasted for the six and their families. And from the reports of the trial proceedings, we know our prayers are heard. We know we are making a difference.

PRAISING & WORSHIPING

We’ve continued to praise and worship God. And those who attended the trial, you’ve carried the presence and the peace of God right into the courtroom itself.

SOUL-WINNING

On the weekend right in the middle of the six-day trial, the altar-call for receiving Jesus saw the stage front being filled!

You who have encountered God, and received Jesus into your hearts on this weekend, know that it was for you, that this trial is all about. There was never one person’s music career. There was only the Crossover. So we could reach you.

SHARING THE WORD OF GOD

We’ve continued to encourage one another through verses in the Bible, verses that now have become so real for us.

USHERING

A team was at the Subordinate Courts every morning to usher the six individuals through the gathering of reporters and photographers, walking side-by-side with each of the six, in that now-infamous walk up (and down) the steps of the Subordinate Courts.

In fact, the same team was also keeping track of the arrival times of the cars that brought the six individuals to court, making sure that one of CHC’s own would be there to receive each of the six and their family members.

HOSPITALITY

CHC’s hospitality team planned for each day’s lunchtime, that all-important break for them to refresh and regroup. The lawyers and their teams had a taste of CHC hospitality!

CITY NEWS

City News has been nothing short of amazing. Its team of writers, media crew and the news presenters provided the community, both church and the public, excellent coverage of the trial proceedings on a day-by-day basis.

City News itself was written about by The Straits Times, becoming the news provider that other news talk about!

Finally, for those that attended the court sessions, you’ve also demonstrated something else that CHC has always been known for being very good at – arriving early, queuing up in good orderly fashion, and getting seats!

Your being there brought an assuring presence, and an atmosphere of faith and love to the six and their families, at a place and time when they needed the church most. You showed up.

CHC, in these six days, we decided to walk together with the six individuals. Together, we walked tall.

We walked in faith, hope… and love.

These six days, the nation did not just see six individuals. They saw a church in action. They now see, hear and know City Harvest Church as we really are.

This Crossover is now happening right here, on home ground.

Ed Ong

City News speaks with a court reporter from a local news organization (who cannot be named) to find out how those reports make their way so quickly into the next day’s papers. How do you manage to catch everything that is being said in court?

City News speaks with a court reporter from a local news organization (who cannot be named) to find out how those reports make their way so quickly into the next day’s papers.

How do you manage to catch everything that is being said in court?

Shorthand! It’s very important to know shorthand—it saves you a lot of time. Shorthand is basically a combination of many squiggles and shapes that we are able to read and understand. For reporters, we attend a course to learn this. However, even after attending the course, you really need to keep practicing. Court reporting is a good way to practice, simply because of the sheer speed information transpires. The more you use it, the better you get.

And how do you manage to stay alert during the less stimulating parts of a court proceeding, for example when going through technical details?

We really cannot afford to fall asleep at all, so if there are really dry moments, I’ll start scribbling on my notebook or flipping through documents, just to keep myself doing something apart from waiting for the information to flow. And if I see that my writing is starting to trail off, then I’ll change what I’m doing. For example, instead of writing, maybe I’ll check my e-mail for a minute or two.

How about sweets or snacks?

I usually won’t eat anything to stay awake, because I want to try my best not to miss anything.

How do you deal with the tight deadlines?

It’s one of the requirements of the job—you just have to be able to think fast. For myself, while still in the courtroom, I’m actually already thinking about the arguments, and I have a sheet ready in front of me, which I use to write down what I think are the main points. As the trial progresses, I will keep adding to the list whenever I hear a good point, and I keep signposting and highlighting important quotes during the course of the trial, so that makes it fast for me to draft out my article.

What are some of the interesting aspects of court reporting to you?

Sometimes, even the hearing of charges can be very interesting, especially in cases where there is public interest, because the persons involved only appear for a really short time yet you have to be able to capture all that is being read out.

Concurrently, in your mind you will have to quickly make sense of details like who the person is, why he or she is being charged, what did this person do etc. Sentencing hearings are interesting too as you will be excited to know which side won, especially in cases where the arguments are compelling on both sides.

Finally, what makes a good court reporter?

I think you have to be very objective and not biased towards any side, so that you can constantly keep your balance in assessing the arguments put forward by both the prosecution and the defense. You have to be very sharp too, so that you don’t miss out on arguments. People are not going to alert you whenever there’s a key point being raised.

Accuracy is of paramount importance as well; if you quote people wrongly, it may possibly put a different spin on what was being said, and that may end up damaging somebody’s reputation or testimony, so you have to be very sensitive to that.

A City Harvest Church member pens this letter to the church, as he looks back on the past two weeks when six of its leaders were on trial.

A City Harvest Church member pens this letter to the church, as he looks back on the past two weeks when six of its leaders were on trial.

Dear Friends,We’ve come to the end of six days, the first tranche, of the trial.City Harvest Church: our people and our ministries have, in these six days, crossed over to come into full view of the public eye.And we are still the church that we’ve always been. Twenty-four years have prepared us well for this.

PRAYING & FASTING

We’ve prayed incessantly. We’ve fasted for the six and their families. And from the reports of the trial proceedings, we know our prayers are heard. We know we are making a difference.

PRAISING & WORSHIPING

We’ve continued to praise and worship God. And those who attended the trial, you’ve carried the presence and the peace of God right into the courtroom itself.

SOUL-WINNING

On the weekend right in the middle of the six-day trial, the altar-call for receiving Jesus saw the stage front being filled!

You who have encountered God, and received Jesus into your hearts on this weekend, know that it was for you, that this trial is all about. There was never one person’s music career. There was only the Crossover. So we could reach you.

SHARING THE WORD OF GOD

We’ve continued to encourage one another through verses in the Bible, verses that now have become so real for us.

USHERING

A team was at the Subordinate Courts every morning to usher the six individuals through the gathering of reporters and photographers, walking side-by-side with each of the six, in that now-infamous walk up (and down) the steps of the Subordinate Courts.

In fact, the same team was also keeping track of the arrival times of the cars that brought the six individuals to court, making sure that one of CHC’s own would be there to receive each of the six and their family members.

HOSPITALITY

CHC’s hospitality team planned for each day’s lunchtime, that all-important break for them to refresh and regroup. The lawyers and their teams had a taste of CHC hospitality!

CITY NEWS

City News has been nothing short of amazing. Its team of writers, media crew and the news presenters provided the community, both church and the public, excellent coverage of the trial proceedings on a day-by-day basis.

City News itself was written about by The Straits Times, becoming the news provider that other news talk about!

Finally, for those that attended the court sessions, you’ve also demonstrated something else that CHC has always been known for being very good at – arriving early, queuing up in good orderly fashion, and getting seats!

Your being there brought an assuring presence, and an atmosphere of faith and love to the six and their families, at a place and time when they needed the church most. You showed up.

CHC, in these six days, we decided to walk together with the six individuals. Together, we walked tall.

We walked in faith, hope… and love.

These six days, the nation did not just see six individuals. They saw a church in action. They now see, hear and know City Harvest Church as we really are.

This Crossover is now happening right here, on home ground.

Ed Ong

City News speaks with a court reporter from a local news organization (who cannot be named) to find out how those reports make their way so quickly into the next day’s papers.

City News speaks with a court reporter from a local news organization (who cannot be named) to find out how those reports make their way so quickly into the next day’s papers.

How do you manage to catch everything that is being said in court?

Shorthand! It’s very important to know shorthand—it saves you a lot of time. Shorthand is basically a combination of many squiggles and shapes that we are able to read and understand. For reporters, we attend a course to learn this. However, even after attending the course, you really need to keep practicing. Court reporting is a good way to practice, simply because of the sheer speed information transpires. The more you use it, the better you get.

And how do you manage to stay alert during the less stimulating parts of a court proceeding, for example when going through technical details?

We really cannot afford to fall asleep at all, so if there are really dry moments, I’ll start scribbling on my notebook or flipping through documents, just to keep myself doing something apart from waiting for the information to flow. And if I see that my writing is starting to trail off, then I’ll change what I’m doing. For example, instead of writing, maybe I’ll check my e-mail for a minute or two.

How about sweets or snacks?

I usually won’t eat anything to stay awake, because I want to try my best not to miss anything.

How do you deal with the tight deadlines?

It’s one of the requirements of the job—you just have to be able to think fast. For myself, while still in the courtroom, I’m actually already thinking about the arguments, and I have a sheet ready in front of me, which I use to write down what I think are the main points. As the trial progresses, I will keep adding to the list whenever I hear a good point, and I keep signposting and highlighting important quotes during the course of the trial, so that makes it fast for me to draft out my article.

What are some of the interesting aspects of court reporting to you?

Sometimes, even the hearing of charges can be very interesting, especially in cases where there is public interest, because the persons involved only appear for a really short time yet you have to be able to capture all that is being read out.

Concurrently, in your mind you will have to quickly make sense of details like who the person is, why he or she is being charged, what did this person do etc. Sentencing hearings are interesting too as you will be excited to know which side won, especially in cases where the arguments are compelling on both sides.

Finally, what makes a good court reporter?

I think you have to be very objective and not biased towards any side, so that you can constantly keep your balance in assessing the arguments put forward by both the prosecution and the defense. You have to be very sharp too, so that you don’t miss out on arguments. People are not going to alert you whenever there’s a key point being raised.

Accuracy is of paramount importance as well; if you quote people wrongly, it may possibly put a different spin on what was being said, and that may end up damaging somebody’s reputation or testimony, so you have to be very sensitive to that.

When a mishap happened outside the Subordinate Courts last Thursday, City Harvest members were quick to lend a hand.

When a mishap happened outside the Subordinate Courts last Thursday, City Harvest members were quick to lend a hand.

In the pre-dawn hours of May 23, City Harvest Church members were in the queue along with members of the public to get entry passes to the CHC trial proceedings at the Subordinate Courts. It was the final day of the six-day first tranche of the trial.

It was still dark and the ground was wet from a short but heavy downpour. About 10 minutes before 6am, a female court personnel was on her way up the staircase when she slipped and fell.

“I was in the queue talking to a friend when I heard a loud noise followed by some commotion,” said Maria Tok, a CHC pastor.

When Tok went with two friends to investigate, she found the woman in great pain and suspected that she had sprained her ankle.

Putting her basic knowledge of tui-na (a traditional Chinese massage) to use, Tok performed a simple massage to relieve the pain as the other CHC members helped to light the stairs with their mobile phones.

After a while, the woman felt much better and was able to get back on her feet. “I advised her to see a doctor to ensure there were no fractures,” says Tok. Another member helped carry her things and walked her into the building.

Says Tok, “I was so touched by the love of these CHC members. Despite the rain and coming to queue as early as 3.45am, everyone was quick to lend a hand when there was a need. As Pastor Kong always says, we must find a need and meet it; find a hurt and heal it.”

检方似乎质疑第三名证人的口供；许少毅表示日期错误非出于阴谋，乃人为疏忽。

检方似乎质疑第三名证人的口供；许少毅表示日期错误非出于阴谋，乃人为疏忽。

自上周三起，检方在进行复诘时屡次呈上新证据，让证人感到意外。

首次是检方在盘问第一位证人赖宝婷时，而最近一次则在昨日早上盘问许少毅时发生的，并引发部份资深律师的反对。

昨日检方尝试反驳辩方周三在法庭上建立的论点－《思创》（Xtron）是门可行的生意，且是独立于城市丰收教会的实体。

昨天上午的审讯约长达三小时，副检察官王守仁似乎尝试质疑该证人许少毅的口供，并宣称许前日在法院中的证词与周一的不一致。

王同时也追问许回想五年前的会议细节和日期。许表示他无法记得。

王接着呈上城市丰收教会投资委员会2007年7月29日的会议记录，声称委员会并未举行该会议，却引起辩护律师斯尼华申(N. Sreenivasan)的反对。

辩方也强烈反对区域法官施奇恩允许王呈上前两天未提出的几份额外文件。检方通常只能依据已呈堂的证据对证人进行复诘。

王试图提出许所签署的CHC投资委员会、CHC董事会会议记录、何清伟为《思创》做的担保及许、周英汉、康希和陈一平所做的后备担保书上似乎有出入。

王副检察官根据一系列电邮向许询问，为何两封担保《思创》在跨界计划的费用文件没有标记它们的实际日期。许解释这是人为错误导致的过失，也表示在一些文件上注明日期时，“我们永远不是完美的”，需要考虑一些因素，如拟文件和修改文件的时间。他补充说这些错误并不是出于“阴谋”。

许也提到他和其他三人在2010年给何清伟的个人保证就如同“拥抱他来表示对他（担保跨界计划）的支持”。

昨天上午的审讯总结应是三阶段中的第一阶段。审讯第二阶段将在八月继续开庭。

CHC (Xtron)

由于许少毅在CHC和《思创》（Xtron）担任多重要职，昨日进行的盘问揭开全新的观点。

检方证人许少毅昨日被传召上庭时对他的信仰毫无遮掩。他清楚表示相信跨界计划是CHC透过流行音乐接触非信徒的使命。

作为这次审讯的证人之一，许因曾在教会及《思创》公司里担任要职而占有独特的地位。《思创》是何耀珊音乐事业早期的制作公司。许之前为CHC的董事会会员，但后来卸下董事职位并担任《思创》董事；他也曾任教会投资委员会的委员，因此他能以不同的角度来看这个问题。

许少毅证实曾同意用支付《思创》预付租金来购买《Firna》债券。他也认为《Firna》这家印尼玻璃公司使用《思创》购买债券的金额来支持跨界计划是没有问题的。至于CHC向《思创》购买的债券，许也确认债券文件上显示这笔收入用来资助跨界计划—这笔资金的用途并非机密。

身为地产发展商，许同意辩方律师所说的—“《思创》若只是将钱存起来等候购买房产时机到来是很愚蠢的”。作为一名业主，他清楚会计账目上使用预付租金来抵消《思创》发给教会债券背后的逻辑。

许对跨界计划全权的同意和认可成为昨日下午盘问的重点。他透露自己不仅在言词上支持跨界，并且亲身力行；他和姐夫周英汉本身捐赠4万元支持跨界计划。

是什么促使他全力支持跨界计划？

当辩方律师安德烈（Andre Maniam）询问他是否将跨界计划看为“与传福音和拯救灵魂有关，不仅在销售专辑和赚钱而已？”许证实这点。证人曾看见跨界计划在亚洲的成功，因此他同意他的信仰是“坚信不可见的事”，这里指的是跨界在美国的努力。

对投资毫无质疑

辩方律师唐振辉昨日早上指出教会的建堂基金曾用来投资，而这些投资包括《思创》债券都由德意志银行持有；德意志银行是教会投资的托管银行。

更重要的是，他试图证明教会董事会、投资委员会和执行会员对这些投资早已知情，从未有一人，包括外来的专业顾问如律师和审计师质疑过这些投资和交易。

唐问道：“在你和投资委员会、董事会或外来顾问包括律师和会计师的交流中，从未有人提过这些债券是不正当的，对吗？”

许问答：“是的，法官大人。”

唐也尝试证实这些投资有经过定期的审查，并根据投资政策做评估以确保投资没有偏离政策。

唐在庭上跟进这点—他参考了控辩双方案情同意书里2007年8月17日的第一份债券认购协议。许证实他担任CHC董事期间，《思创》支取1300万元。唐也在同意书里注意到一句陈述：“第一次的债券认购协议中支出给《思创》1300万元是用在跨界计划上。”许同意，可以说每一分钱都花在跨界计划上，因为《思创》的责任就是要宣传何耀珊的音乐事业。

昨日下午再次在法庭上提出何清伟（前译名为哈纳菲）和许，以及其中三名被告—康希、陈一平和周英汉在金钱上资助该计划，并也是跨界计划的担保人。

资深律师加南拉美斯（Kannan Ramesh）提起，如果何清伟，作为《思创》的担保人（以防《思创》因跨界而面对亏损）无法还清债务，许和三位被告将为何清伟做赔偿。

倘若《思创》破产，没有何清伟的担保教会就会蒙受损失。

“若何先生因某些原因无法做出赔偿，那账单交给你们四人，你们四人真的能付清这笔钱吗？” 加南拉美斯问道。“如果这样的事件发生，账单就交给你们四人，对吗？”

许同意。

加南拉美斯再问道：“四人当中，有三人是被控非法挪用教会资金，对吗？周先生、康先生和陈先生。”

许回答：“是的，法官大人。”

“因此具体来说，这三人必须共同自掏腰包补偿教会的钱，对吗？有关他们被控非法挪用的金钱。”

许回答：“是的，法官大人。”

审讯将在今早10点30分继续开庭，由检方对许进行复诘。这将为这阶段审讯做总结。