(Minghui.org) Three residents of Weiyuan County, Sichuan Province were recently convicted for their faith in Falun Gong.
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual and meditation discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Ms. Peng Guirong, 90, her son-in-law, Mr. Liu Wangquan, 66, as well as Ms. Fu Shuqun, 83, were arrested on June 19, 2019.
The three practitioners appeared in Weiyuan County Court on October 10, October 22, and December 19, 2019, respectively. The court appointed lawyers to each of them, who entered guilty pleas for the practitioners.
Mr. Liu testified in his own defense. Ms. Fu and Ms. Peng also shared how they had benefitted from practicing Falun Gong and urged the judge not to participate in the persecution.
The judge recently sentenced Mr. Liu to four years in prison with a 3,000-yuan fine. Ms. Fu was given two years of probation. Ms. Peng was convicted but exempted from criminal punishment due to her advanced age.
Mr. Liu is a retired military officer who worked at Weiyuan County Administration for Industry and Commerce. He began to practice Falun Gong in July 1997.
For not giving up his faith, he served two prison terms of three and eight years between March 2000 and December 2011.
Guards at Deyang Prison forced him to do intensive unpaid labor, didn’t allow him to sleep, exposed him to freezing temperatures in the winter and the baking sun in the summer for long hours.
Mr. Liu persisted in telling inmates about the persecution of Falun Gong and never responded to the torture with resentment or violence. Many inmates were moved by his compassion and stopped torturing him.
The authorities continued to harass Mr. Liu after he was released in 2011, leaving him and his family living in fear and mental distress.
Mr. Liu was arrested again on July 5, 2014. He returned home the next day, only to learn that his wife, Ms. Liu Jianping, had been arrested at home the night before. The police confiscated their computer, printer and 20,000 yuan in cash. Ms. Peng, who lives with her daughter and son-in-law, was terrified by the police raid and fainted.
Ms. Liu was later given eight years and is currently serving time at Longquan Prison.
Mr. Liu Wangquan Imprisoned for Five Years--Deyang Prison Authorities Deny Visitation Rights
Falun Gong Practitioner Signs Criminal Complaint Against Jiang Zemin at Third Hearing
Sichuan Province: Fifteen Practitioners in Zigong City and Weiyuan County Arrested