(Minghui.org) Two Shanghai residents were recently sentenced to prison for their faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since July 1999.
Ms. Yang Manye, 54, and Ms. Gu Jihong were arrested on February 25, 2021 for talking to people about Falun Gong at a local supermarket. They appeared in Jing’an District Court on September 24, 2021 and were later convicted. Ms. Yang was sentenced to two years with an 8,000-yuan fine and Ms. Gu was given one and a half years with a 6,000-yuan fine.
Past Persecution
Ms. Yang Manye
Since the onset of the persecution, Ms. Yang has been sentenced to four years twice, first in 2001 and then 2014. She also served one and a half years of forced labor between 2006 and 2007. Because she refused to renounce Falun Gong, her first prison term was extended by nine months. The guards held her in solitary confinement, shocked her with electric batons, deprived her of sleep and barred her from using the restroom or taking a shower. She was also force-fed and constantly beaten.
Because of her decade-long incarceration, Ms. Yang’s son was deprived of his mother’s presence when he was still in elementary school. Just weeks after Ms. Yang’s latest arrest, her father, in his 80s, was discharged from the hospital and struggled to care for himself. Her mother-in-law, who is also in her 80s and suffers from multiple chronic ailments and has difficulty walking, also longs for Ms. Yang’s return.
First Four-year Prison Sentence
Ms. Yang was first arrested in January 2000 for distributing informational materials about Falun Gong. After nine months at the Putuo District Detention Center, she was sentenced to four years.
At the Shanghai Women’s Prison, guards Qiu Minying, Huang Hui and Shu Ping once shocked her mouth and face with three electric batons, until she was severely burnt.
Ms. Yang was later held in solitary confinement for two weeks. The guards handcuffed her hands behind her back, pulled her arms up and hung her up by the wrists. With her mouth taped, the inmate beat and verbally abused her at will.
In addition to the physical torture, Ms. Yang was forced to make clothes in the prison factory, often for over ten hours a day and sometimes up to 20 hours. She took a fall due to fatigue and broke her knees.
Her term was extended for nine months and she was held in a 30 square feet solitary confinement cell for over eight months.
1.5-year Labor Camp Term
Ms. Yang was arrested again on January 22, 2006 for talking to people about Falun Gong. She was first held at the Putuo District Detention Center and then given 1.5-years at the Shanghai Women’s Forced Labor Camp.
The guards handcuffed her behind her back and kept her hung up by the wrists for long hours in an enclosed room in the heat of the summer. They wouldn’t let her down even when she had a fever.
Torture reenactment: hanging up
Two More Arrests
A dozen officers broke into Ms. Yang’s home on June 6, 2009. When her 16-year-old son tried to stop the police from taking her away, officer Chen Hongbin held his head, while others ransacked the home and arrested Ms. Yang. On the next day, the police came back and intimidated the teenager.
Ms. Yang was detained at the Putuo District Detention Center for a month and then released. Three months later, on October 22, she was arrested again and taken to a brainwashing center. Her family went to the residential committee and Domestic Security Office to seek her release, but to no avail.
Second Four-year Prison Sentence
Ms. Yang’s next arrest was on October 9, 2013. Her husband and son were also taken to the police station and held there for nearly 20 hours. She was sentenced to four years by the Putuo District Court on August 29, 2014 and taken to the Shanghai Women’s Prison in early November 2014.
One More Arrest
Ms. Yang was arrested one more time on September 26, 2019. She held a hunger strike at the Putuo District Detention Center and was force fed every day. She was released on bail on October 31, 2019.
Related reports:
Two Shanghai Residents Face Prosecution for Their Faith
Two Shanghai Residents on Hunger Strike, Denied Visits by Their Lawyers
Shanghai Woman Sentenced to Four Years in Prison Following Her Fifth Arrest
Ms. Yang Manye Arrested Repeatedly
Ms. Yang Manye from Shanghai Arrested a Fifth Time
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