(Minghui.org) Two Tangshan City, Hebei Province residents were sentenced to one year in prison for hanging up banners bearing messages about Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Ms. Li Xiuhua, 56, and Ms. Deng Deping, around 47, were arrested on May 13, 2019 after being reported for putting up the banners.
They appeared in the Lubei District Court on November 8, 2019. Their two lawyers entered a not guilty plea on their behalf. Both women also testified in their own defense and shared how Falun Gong improved their health and enabled them to be better people.
Ms. Li’s husband, Mr. Meng Fanquan, submitted an additional defense opinion on November 23 and urged the judge to uphold justice for his wife and to not follow the 20-year persecution policy that has no legal basis at all.
The judge announced the verdicts on December 5, 2019. Both women have appealed the sentences.
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