(Minghui.org) A 49-year-old resident of Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province, was arrested on March 19, 2024, while on the run to avoid being jailed for practicing her faith, Falun Gong, a mind-body practice that has been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party since July 1999.
Ms. Niu Xiaona was taken to the Harbin City Second Detention Center following her arrest. Having been severely disabled for decades, she was unable to get out of bed, walk, shower, or use the restroom on her own. Before she was transferred to the Heilongjiang Province Women’s Prison in late May 2024 to serve a 15-year term, she only got to wash her face four times with the help of other inmates during her two months of incarceration at the detention center.
Ms. Niu’s prison sentence was triggered by her earlier arrest on April 19, 2021. Despite her disability, the authorities held her in detention for three months before releasing her on bail.
The Harbin Railroad Transportation Court convicted Ms. Niu in late September 2022 and ordered her to serve a 15-year sentence, including a 14-year term previously given in 2004, which Ms. Niu already served outside of prison per court order due to her physical disability. Following her latest conviction, however, the Harbin Railroad Transportation Court claimed that Ms. Niu failed to provide official documentation proving she served the 14-year sentence outside of prison and thus ordered the combined term of 15 years. Ms. Niu was also fined 1,000 yuan. She appealed the verdict to the higher court but there is no report yet regarding the outcome of her appeal.
In order to avoid being jailed, Ms. Niu went into hiding, only to be seized on March 19, 2024 while she was still mourning her mother’s death.
Ms. Niu’s mother, Ms. Tuo Wenxia, was arrested with her on April 19, 2021, also for practicing Falun Gong. Ms. Tuo was later released on bail. While on bail, she was diagnosed with late-stage endometrial cancer. Her doctor couldn’t operate on her as she also had hyperthyroidism, which caused a metabolism disorder and influenced the progression of the endometrial cancer. In the months that followed, her conditions kept worsening and she had fever and was in pain every day. She was taken to a hospital and the doctors found that her cancer spread to other organs. She died on November 5, 2023, at the age of 73.
Health Improved Thanks to Falun Gong, Targeted for Upholding Her Faith
When she was still a college student in the 1990s, Ms. Niu developed progressive rheumatoid arthritis, the same disease that killed her grandfather. Tormented by the disease, she became emaciated and lost almost all her hair. Her knees were extremely swollen and bent nearly 90 degrees. Her arms were also swollen and crossed in front of her chest. Her finger joints were deformed from the swelling as well. Confined to bed, she was in constant, excruciating pain throughout her body.
After trying various medicines, her disease wasn’t cured, but the side effects damaged many of her internal organs. Spending many nights sleepless, she thought about suicide.
Ms. Niu’s mother was a college professor. One of her students who also became a college professor after graduation had to quit her job due to a severe heart condition. That student later took up Falun Gong and soon recovered. When she returned to work, Ms. Niu’s mother was impressed to see Falun Gong’s health benefits, and she encouraged Ms. Niu to practice.
Unable to stand up, Ms. Niu sat in bed and followed the hand movements of the Falun Gong exercises. Soon, the pain disappeared and the swelling subsided. But as her joint periosteum, the membrane that covers the outer surface of bones and provides attachment for muscles and tendons, had already rotted, she couldn’t fully stand up anymore.
After the Chinese communist regime began its persecution of Falun Gong in 1999, Ms. Niu, her mother and her father (a non-practitioner) were all arrested. She was forced to stop practicing Falun Gong, and the bone pain recurred.
Her family later moved to Harbin to avoid the persecution, and she started to do the Falun Gong exercises again. Before long, she could walk a few steps with a walker. Then she could walk a few meters while half squatting. Then she could take bigger steps. Her deformed fingers also recovered. Her heart and liver that were damaged by the medicine regained their function as well.
While Ms. Niu remained severely disabled and relied on her parents to care for her, her quality of life was much improved after she resumed practicing Falun Gong. Her simple act of pursuing a healthier life, however, was met with prison sentences.
Related reports:
Severely Disabled Woman Ordered to Serve 15 Years for Her Faith in Falun Gong
Elderly Mother and Disabled Daughter Face Prosecution for Practicing Falun Gong
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