(Minghui.org) A Weifang City, Shandong Province resident was recently sentenced to one year for her faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Ms. Shi Juntao, 63, was arrested at home on June 25, 2022. The police broke in by scaling the wall. Her computer, printer and other office supplies she used to print Falun Gong materials at home were confiscated. She was later released on bail for a year.
The Fangzi District Court scheduled a hearing of her case on October 24, but later canceled it as her lawyer was unable to travel from Beijing to Weifang due to the pandemic. The rescheduled hearing on November 4 was also canceled for an unknown reason.
During the trial on December 6, Ms. Shi insisted that she didn’t violate any law in practicing Falun Gong. When the judge asked her whether she still practiced Falun Gong, she said that she used to suffer various ailments, including severe stomach problem, intensive headache and back pain. She was completely healthy two months after taking up Falun Gong. Her family was in harmony thanks to her practice and there is no way for her to give it up.
The judge accused her of committing crimes by printing Falun Gong materials at home. She responded that she did so to raise awareness about the persecution.
Ms. Shi’s lawyer entered a not guilty plea for her. He argued that no law has ever criminalized Falun Gong in China and that the ban on Falun Gong books has been lifted by the Chinese Publication Bureau in 2011. He said his client didn’t break any law or harm anyone in practicing her faith.
The judge announced her sentence of one year at the end of the trial. Ms. Shi hasn’t been taken into custody at the time of writing.
Since the onset of the persecution in 1999, Ms. Shi has been targeted multiple times. She was arrested in May 2000 and August 2002, and detained for seven and forty days, respectively. She was arrested again in 2003, but it’s not clear how long she was detained.
While she was in custody, she was beaten, shocked with electric batons, handcuffed and shackled, as well as having her head wrapped with tape.
Perpetrators’ contact information:
Liu Guangyong (刘光勇), officer of Nanliu Police Station: +86-18663665016Dou Zhengwei (窦正伟), judge of Fangzi District Court: +86-18506368022
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