(Minghui.org) Six Meizhou City, Guangdong Province, residents were recently sentenced to prison with heavy fines for practicing Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Ms. Zeng Xiuqiong, 59, was given 5.5 years and fined 90,000 yuan. Ms. Xie Guofen, 62, was given 4.5 years and fined 70,000 yuan. Ms. Li Lizhen, 64, was given 4 years and fined 60,000 yuan. Ms. Zhang Taofeng, 47, was given 2 years and fined 30,000 yuan. Ms. Liu Meifen, 43, and Ms. Huang Shuzhen, 75, were both sentenced to one year with 1.5 years probation and 15,000 yuan fine.
The six women were tried together on September 29, 2024. It’s not known which day the sentence was announced. It’s also unclear whether Ms. Zeng, Ms. Xie, Ms. Zhang, and Ms. Li are still held at a local detention center. Ms. Liu and Ms. Huang, who were out on bail at the time of the trial, are now serving probation.
Arrested Weeks Apart
Ms. Zeng and Ms. Xie were arrested at Ms. Zeng’s home on April 17, 2024. The police raided the homes of Ms. Zhang and Ms. Liu around the same time. Ms. Zeng, Ms. Xie, and Ms. Zhang were taken to a detention center in Zhuyang Village, Chengdong Town, Meixian District the next day. Ms. Liu wasn’t arrested because she had been diagnosed with cancer.
Ms. Li was arrested in mid-May 2024 and taken to the same detention center.
Ms. Huang was forced to report to the police on May 7, 2024. After a physical examination indicated she had a systolic blood pressure of 210 mmHg (120 or lower is normal), she was released on bail.
Tried Jointly
The Meixian District Court held a joint hearing of the six women’s cases on September 29, 2024. Judges Wei Donghua and Li Bing presided over the trial. Two prosecutors (both female) from the Meixian District Procuratorate were present and alleged that the six practitioners broke the law because they often studied the Falun Gong teachings together.
Three of the practitioners pointed out that no law in China criminalizes Falun Gong and that it was their constitutional right to study the Falun Gong teachings on their own or together. They also explained how they regained their health through practicing Falun Gong. The judges interrupted them several times.
The practitioners also said the arresting officers failed to show their IDs or any search warrants during the arrests and home raids.
Four lawyers and a few non-lawyer defenders represented the practitioners. Three of the lawyers entered not-guilty pleas for their respective clients.
One lawyer said that his client never signed her name on the list of confiscated items, but he noted that the list had “Dafa” [note: Falun Gong is also known as Falun Dafa] and “Dafa disciple” written on it. He suspected that prosecutors wrote those words themselves. The latter denied having done so and said a family member of the practitioner signed the list next to “Dafa” and “Dafa disciple.”
The lawyer requested that the family member appear in court to verify whether the signature was her handwriting. The prosecutors did not respond to the request.
Other lawyers refuted the prosecutors’ allegation that their clients broke the law by possessing Falun Gong books. They challenged the prosecutors to present applicable legal basis, and the prosecutors had no evidence to show any crimes were committed.
The hearing began at 9:30 a.m. and ended at 6 p.m.
Related Reports:
Six Guangdong Residents Stand Trial for Practicing Falun Gong
Meizhou City, Guangdong Province: Six Falun Gong Practitioners Face Trial for Their Faith
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