(Minghui.org) Eight more Falun Gong practitioners are confirmed to have been sentenced to prison in late 2016 for resisting the Chinese communist regime’s persecution of their spiritual faith. Their sentences range from 1 to 4.5 years.
Seven of the sentenced practitioners, including a couple in their 70s, were arrested for distributing materials exposing the persecution to the public, while the other was targeted because she filed a criminal complaint against former Chinese dictator Jiang Zemin for ordering the persecution of Falun Gong.
The practitioners are scattered all across China, from eastern Tianjin to western Sichuan Province, and from southern Guangdong Province to northern Heilongjiang Province.
Ms. Wang Chunlan was arrested on May 4, 2016, and had her home searched twice soon afterward. The local court tried her on July 19 and sentenced her to 4 years, despite objections from a higher court. According to insiders, the local 610 Office orchestrated the guilty verdict against Ms. Wang.
Another local practitioner, Ms. Wan Huimin, 68, was arrested on December 6, 2015, for suing Jiang Zemin. She was sentenced to 4 years on December 15, 2016. She is now appealing her case.
Mr. Meng Yuanlin, 77, and his wife Ms. Zhao Huicheng, 70, from Deyang City, Sichuan Province, were both sentenced to one year in prison on December 29, 2016. They were arrested for distributing Falun Gong informational flyers at a farmers' market on May 11, 2016.
The Anzhou District Court held the first hearing against the couple on October 19, 2016. Their attorney filed not guilty pleas for them, and they were released on bail after the hearing.
The couple was taken back to the police station on December 29, 2016, and given a one-year prison sentence. They are currently detained at Mianyang City Detention Center.
Ms. Cui Weie from Maoming, Guangdong Province, was sentenced to three years in prison in the Dianbai District Court in early December, without a hearing. Her family was forced to pay 2,000 yuan by the court. Ms. Cui had been taken to Guangdong Women's Prison.
Ms. Cui was arrested on August 15, 2016. The police ransacked her home and confiscated her Falun Gong books and related materials.
When Ms. Cui's family went to the police station and Domestic Security Division to demand her release, they couldn't find any of the responsible officials and were only given the runaround.
Ms. Wang Liyan, from Mudanjiang, Heilongjiang Province, was sentenced to 4.5 years in prison in the Xi'an District Court on December 20, 2016. Her family is planning to file an appeal.
Ms. Wang had been detained for more than eight months after she was arrested on April 19, 2016. Her case was once returned to the police by the procuratorate due to insufficient evidence. But the police still pushed the case back to the procuratorate for prosecution.
Ms. Gong Benhua, 70, and Ms. Chen Huanhua, 56, were each sentenced to 3 years on December 8, 2016, and sent to Harbin Women’s Prison on January 3, 2017.
The two women were arrested on July 21, 2016, while hanging up banners bearing Falun Gong messages.
The police ransacked Ms. Gong’s home hours later and confiscated her Falun Gong books and other valuables. They fired three shots into the air when they left in the early morning.
Ms. Chen’s home was also ransacked. Her younger sister, who was arrested together with her and Ms. Gong, was released after she developed high blood pressure.
天津市宁河区王春兰被冤判四年四川省绵竹市孟元林和赵慧成夫妇被诬判广东茂名市崔伟娥被非法判刑三年牡丹江市王丽嬿医生被冤判四年半