(Minghui.org) A 66-year-old woman in Dalian City, Liaoning Province lost her appeal in mid-August against a one-year prison sentence for her faith in Falun Gong, a mind-body practice that has been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party since July 1999.
Ms. Xu Yunlan was arrested at home by Nansha Police Station officers on June 3, 2021. Her home was also raided. She was soon released on bail after she failed the required medical examination. The police kept harassing her at home and later submitted her case to the Shahekou District Procuratorate.
The procuratorate indicted Ms. Xu in mid-March 2023. She was forced to undergo three medical examinations afterwards, but each time she was shown to have poor health and was denied admission to the local detention center.
For some unknown reason, Ms. Xu’s case was later transferred from her home district of Shahekou to Ganjingzi District in Dalian City. She appeared in the Ganjingzi District Court on April 12. During the hearing, Ms. Xu testified in her own defense and shared how Falun Gong restored her health and taught her to be a better person. She reiterated that no enacted law in China has criminalized Falun Gong and that the Constitution protects citizens’ right to freedom of belief.
Prosecutor Liu Zhonglin kept interrupting Ms. Xu and alleged that she was promoting Falun Gong in court. He asked if she admitted to her guilt of practicing Falun Gong, and she said no. Judge Liu Lina then ended the hearing.
Nansha Police Station officers showed up at Ms. Xu’s home on May 30 and drove her straight to the Ganjingzi District Court, where judge Liu announced a one-year prison sentence with a 10,000-yuan fine.
Ms. Xu filed an appeal with the Dalian City Intermediate Court. Judge Zheng (first name unknown) held a hearing on July 20 and ruled in mid-August to uphold her original verdict.
It is unclear when Ms. Xu may be taken back into custody to serve time.
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