(Minghui.org) Ms. Liu Aiping, a 53-year-old Falun Gong practitioner from the Binhai New Area, was tried in Tianjin on September 20, 2016. Her attorney defended her innocence and demanded her release.
During the trial Ms. Liu testified that all her health problems disappeared shortly after she began practicing Falun Gong, so she wanted more people to know how good Falun Gong was and how one could benefit from practicing it. She said that practicing Falun Gong was not a crime and that she should be released.
Ms. Liu's attorney defended his client's innocence. He argued that Ms. Liu was a good person who followed the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance and that she did not undermine or sabotage any laws. The Chinese Constitution, he noted, protected her right to distribute information about Falun Gong, because it guarantees freedom of belief and freedom of speech.
The prosecutor charged Ms. Liu with "using a cult organization to undermine or sabotage law enforcement." This charge is a standard pretext used by the Chinese communist regime to frame and imprison Falun Gong practitioners.
The attorney pointed out that Falun Gong is not a cult according to any law and that the persecution of Falun Gong has no legal basis. Also, the evidence was invalid, because it was taken from Ms. Liu's home without her consent. Her home was searched illegally, without a warrant, and the evidence only indicates that Ms. Liu practices Falun Gong.
Ms. Liu was arrested by Xincun Police Station officers on the evening of May 13, 2016. They ransacked her home and confiscated a computer, a Chiwei tablet, a DVD player, and Falun Gong books. Ms. Liu was taken to the Wuqing Detention Center.
Ms. Liu's daughter just had a baby and needs her mother's help. Ms. Liu has also been taking care of her 80-year-old mother-in-law. The family hasn’t told the elderly woman that Ms. Liu has been arrested, because they are afraid she cannot bear the bad news.
Ms. Liu is still being held in Wuqing Detention Center.