(Minghui.org) Ms. Zhou Chunling from Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province, was admitted to the Heilongjiang Province Women’s Prison in mid-September 2024 after losing an appeal to revoke a three-year sentence one month prior.
Ms. Zhou, a fast food worker, was arrested on November 9, 2023, for practicing Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party since July 1999. She stood trial at the Daoli District Court on March 8, 2024 and was sentenced to three years and fined 10,000-yuan on April 22. See the first related report for details of her arrest and prosecution.
Ms. Zhou filed an appeal and the Harbin City Intermediate Court registered her case on May 24. Judge Wang Lin called her daughter on May 27 to say that the intermediate court had to be notified if the family intended to hire an appeals lawyer. The family learned later that judge Wang told the appeals lawyer that the court might or might not hold a hearing.
Wang notified the lawyer at the end of June 2024 that an appeals hearing had been scheduled for July 5 but called the next day to say the hearing had been canceled.
The intermediate court ruled against Ms. Zhou in mid-August 2024 without holding a hearing. She was admitted to prison one month later.
Prior to Ms. Zhou’s latest sentencing, she was jailed for ten years between 2002 and 2012. For details of her past persecution, refer to the second related report below.
Having Served Ten Years for Her Faith, Fast Food Worker Gets Another Three Years
Once Jailed for 10 Years, Fast Food Worker Stands Trial Again for Her Faith in Falun Gong