(Minghui.org) At least sixteen Falun Gong practitioners in Fengcheng City, Liaoning Province have been targeted for their faith in recent months. Four have been sentenced to prison, one is facing trial, three are facing indictment, and eight were harassed.
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is an ancient spiritual and meditation discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Four Sentenced
Ms. Liu Yinfeng, 68, was arrested on May 30, 2018. She was sentenced to seven years in prison with a 50,000-yuan fine around September by the Fengcheng City Court, after two hearings on January 9, 2019 and August 13, 2020. She is now awaiting the result of her appeal with the Dandong City Intermediate Court.
Mr. Ju Shimiao, a 45-year-old financial management professional, Ms. Sun Zhongqin, 68, and Ms. Tong Xiuhong were arrested on December 8, 2019, for talking to people about Falun Gong.
After two hearings by the Zhen’an District Court on October 23 and November 17, the judge sentenced Mr. Ju to three years with a 5,000-yuan fine; Ms. Sun to three and a half years with a 5,000-yuan fine; and Ms. Tong to eleven months with a 3,000-yuan fine on November 25.
Mr. Ju and Ms. Sun have appealed the verdicts with the Dandong City Intermediate Court. Mr. Ju is currently detained at Kuandian Detention Center and Ms. Sun at Dandong Detention Center. Ms. Tong has been released after serving her time.
One Facing Trial
Ms. Dai Yuzhi was arrested on May 25, 2020 after being reported for talking to people about Falun Gong. She was released on the same day, but received a notice from the Zhen’an District Court in early November 2020 that she was scheduled to appear in court. More details about her case remain unknown as the time of writing.
Three Facing Indictment
Ms. Sun Jifeng, Ms. Yan Shuyun, and Ms. Jiao Liqun were arrested on November 16. Their computers and Falun Gong books were confiscated. A fourth practitioner, Ms. He Ping, escaped arrest, but had her home ransacked.
Ms. Jiao was released on November 25 and the other two practitioners were released on December 23 after one month of detention at Dandong Detention Center.
It’s reported that the authorities in Fengcheng hired retirees to monitor local Falun Gong practitioners, with a monthly salary of 1,600-1,800 yuan. In Fengcheng Town only, 18 such people were hired. These people walked the streets every day looking for Falun Gong materials. As soon as they noticed practitioners putting up or distributing Falun Gong materials, they would take photos of or videotape them. Then they submitted such evidence to the police, which was subsequently used to make arrests.
The three practitioners are now facing indictment for their faith.
Eight Harassed
As a part of the “Zero-out” campaign, a coordinated effort to pressure every practitioner on a government blacklist to renounce Falun Gong, many practitioners in Fengcheng were harassed by the authorities in recent months.
They include Ms. Tong Shufang, two practitioners surnamed Cong and Hong, Ms. Wang Shuqing, Ms. Jiang Hong, Mr. Ye Zhigang, Ms. Yang Kexin, and Ms. Ma Guizhen.
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