(Minghui.org) A Shanghai resident in her 70s was sentenced to a 1.5-year prison term on July 10, 2020, one week after she appeared in court for her faith in Falun Gong.
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is an ancient spiritual and meditation discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Ms. Wang Renxiang was arrested at a subway station on July 26, 2019. The police ransacked her home and confiscated her Falun Gong books. She has been held at the Putuo District Detention Center for nearly a year. She has been suffering declining health and gradually losing her hearing and vision. She was found to have high blood pressure in recent weeks. She couldn’t eat for two weeks and was given IV drips.
This was the fifth time that Ms. Wang has been arrested for her faith. She was first arrested in June 2000 and given two years of forced labor. She was taken back into custody not long after being released and given another two years of forced labor in September 2003. Guards at the Shanghai Women’s Forced Labor Camp forced her to stand facing a wall from 5:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. daily, with restricted restroom use. Other inmates verbally abused her at the same time.
Ms. Wang weighed only 90 pounds when she was released in 2005. She also suffered reduced hearing and vision.
Ms. Wang was arrested one more time, by officers in several police cars, in August 2008, prior to the Beijing Olympics, as the authorities attempted to prevent Falun Gong practitioners from going to Beijing to appeal for their faith. She was detained for a month this time.
She was arrested the fourth time on May 26, 2009, and given one year of forced labor.
Her repeated arrests and detention left her husband and daughter deeply traumatized. Worrying about her safety when she was incarcerated, they often woke up in the middle of the night and were unable to fall asleep again.
Ms. Wang Renxiang Arrested and Persecuted Four Times in Shanghai