(Minghui.org) Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Huang Duohong was illegally put on trial at the Sanjiaoping Detention Center by the judge from Yuhu District Court in Xiangtan City, Hunan Province, at 9 a.m. on April 10, 2013. Her lawyer from Beijing submitted a well-founded plea of not guilty to the court and asked the judge to release Ms. Huang immediately. The judge said they needed to report to their superiors.
Details
Ms. Huang was arrested at Ms. Xiong Qiuling's home in Leiyang City by officers from Hengyang City Domestic Security Division, Leiyang City 610 Office, and Caizichi Police Station at 7 p.m. on October 28, 2012. She was forced to leave her home more than seven years ago to avoid being persecuted, but was arrested in Leiyang. She was taken to the Xiangtan City Detention Center.
Only a few people attended the trial, including the judge, public prosecutor, court staff, and the defense lawyer. Only Ms. Huang's mother and her younger brother and sister were in the visitors' seating area. Ms. Huang's other friends were not allowed to attend the trial. During Ms. Huang's detention, her family had not been allowed to see her, even when her father was dying. The guards at the detention center refused her father's requests to see his daughter for the last time. Ms. Huang's mother noticed that her daughter had lost a lot of weight and wore tattered clothes and shoes. Ms. Huang's mother was in tears.
When Ms. Huang made her statement in court, she firmly stated that it was not wrong to practice Falun Gong. Her lawyer also entered a plea of not guilty. After the trial, a staff member of the court gave a thumbs up to the lawyer and said, “You did a great job!” Regarding the lawyer's request to acquit Ms. Huang, the judge said that they had to report it to their superiors and then make their decision.
Arrested Many Times
Ms. Huang, 42, used to run a successful stationery shop in the Yuhu District of Xiangtan City. She conducts herself according to the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance in her daily life. She was a good wife and daughter-in-law, respected her parents, and always considered other people first. When she would find expensive items that people lost, she would return them to their owners, not asking for any reward.
Since July 20, 1999, when the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) started the persecution of Falun Gong, Ms. Huang was illegally arrested and detained many times. She was even beaten by the police just because she went to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong.
Ms. Huang was arrested and sentenced to two years in Baimalong Forced Labor Camp in Zhuzhou City, Hunan Province in 2001. Because she refused to renounce her belief, the guards put a dirty rag in her mouth, slapped her in the face, and kicked the lower parts of her body. Due to the harsh environment at the camp, her skin began to fester, which was very painful and itchy.
Ms. Huang's home has been ransacked many times, and her computer worth 9,000 yuan and other personal belongings were confiscated.
Ms. Huang's family has also suffered intense pressure from the local government while she was being persecuted. Her husband had to divorce her under threats from the Xiangtan 610 Office and the local police. The judge ruled that all their savings, house, and valuables should be given to her husband.
In April 2005, officials from the Xiangtan City 610 Office arrested Ms. Huang's younger brother, a non-practitioner, and extorted money from the family to release him. They took 50,000 yuan in cash, personal items worth 50,000 yuan, and a motorbike that cost 6,000 yuan.
More and more people are learning the facts of the persecution and are standing up for justice for Falun Gong. Nearly 100 people have jointly signed a letter asking the local government to release Ms. Huang Duohong immediately.
