(Minghui.org) Two Suizhong County residents appeared in court on November 16 to appeal against their prison sentences for distributing information about Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline being persecuted by the Chinese communist regime.

Ms. Dong Guixia and Ms. Li Yujie were arrested on July 16, 2016, and sentenced to prison on September 30 after two hearings. Ms. Dong was given 7.5 years and Ms. Li 1 year. Both women were also each fined 5,000 yuan.

Huludao Intermediate Court didn’t inform the two practitioners of the appeals hearing until one day before the session. By law, defendants should receive at least a 3-day advance notice.

Both practitioners defended their constitutional right to practice and spread information about Falun Gong, as no law in China criminalizes Falun Gong. Judge Han Ling adjourned the session without issuing a verdict.

Ms. Dong has been on a hunger strike for nearly 4 months and is forced fed on a daily basis. She was handcuffed and shackled so tightly that she couldn’t walk by herself and had to be dragged in and out of the courtroom by bailiffs.

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