(Minghui.org) A married couple in Liquan County, Xianyang City, Shaanxi Province, were sentenced to prison in October 2024, for their shared faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Ms. Zhang Xueya, 61, and Mr. Zhao Chong’an, 65, had been forced to live away from home since August 2022 to avoid police harassment. The Qian County Police Department put them on the wanted list.
After two years of displacement, the couple was arrested by officers in Yanta District, Xi’an City, Shaanxi Province, on April 26, 2024. They were sent back to Xianyang, with Ms. Zhang detained in the Qindu District Detention Center and Mr. Zhao in the Qian County Detention Center.
The Qindu District Court sentenced the couple to prison in October 2024. Ms. Zhang was given three years and nine months. Mr. Zhao, who received three years and six months, is allowed to serve time at home, as he has become incapacitated and incontinent due to abuse in custody.
Past Persecution
Both Ms. Zhang and Mr. Zhao used to have severe medical conditions. Ms. Li was bedridden and Mr. Zhao was unable to work due to a heart condition and neck problem. After they both took up Falun Gong in 1997, they regained their health and their quality of life significantly improved.
After the Chinese communist regime ordered the persecution of Falun Gong in 1999, the couple faced constant harassment from the local police station, village committee, and township government. The harassers sometimes came during the day, and sometimes in the middle of the night. Sometimes they also showed up on rainy days. The couple’s children were so terrified that they panicked whenever they saw a police car or heard a siren.
Gao Chao, the village Party secretary, Lu Lin, the deputy secretary, and several other village officials harassed Ms. Zhang at home on April 19, 2001, and deceived her into going to a brainwashing session. She was forced to read books slandering Falun Gong and ordered to write statements to renounce Falun Gong. Zhao Limin and Luo Xuekai, the deputy secretary and director of the Political and Legal Affairs Committee, lectured and pressured her and other practitioners every day. After she was released four months later, the police came back frequently to harass her.
More than ten plainclothes police officers arrested Ms. Zhang and her husband on March 20, 2014, when they were working in the farm field. Several officers carried Ms. Zhang into their cruiser and pressed on her chest, almost suffocating her. The rest of them held Mr. Zhao and then raided the couple’s home, confiscating their Falun Gong books and informational materials. Both of them were then taken to the Chigan Police Station.
Police chief Zhao Duofang restrained Mr. Zhao in an interrogation chair and left Ms. Zhang in the yard. He later ordered Ms. Zhang to come in. She refused and was beaten. Mr. Zhao was later given 15 days at the Qiaobei Lockup in Liquan County and Ms. Zhang was given 15 days at the Xianyang City Detention Center. Their son was forced to pay 800 yuan for Ms. Zhang’s physical examination. The 280 yuan Mr. Zhao had on him was confiscated by a guard surnamed Zheng.
The couple’s arrest and detention dealt a blow to Ms. Zhang’s father. He soon fell ill and passed away a year later.
Four officers from the Liquan County Police Department, including Wang Tao, Liu Xiangfei, Zhu Pan, and the fourth one whose name wasn’t known, arrested the couple’s daughter, Ms. Zhao Wanwan, on August 24, 2018. They knocked her down to the ground, stepped on her chest and attempted to sexually harass her. Wang extorted 4,000 yuan from the family and released Ms. Zhao around 2 a.m.
Ms. Zhao was admitted to the Xianyang City First People’s Hospital on September 1, 2018, and was found to have pleural effusion. The doctor removed nearly 4 liters of fluid from her. She stayed in the hospital for ten days.
Ms. Zhang and Mr. Zhao were arrested again on August 17, 2022, after being reported for talking to people about Falun Gong. The arresting officers from the Qian County Police Department raided their rental place and confiscated their computers and other belongings. The same officers also worked with their counterparts at the Chigan Police Station to raid the couple’s home in Liquan County. The couple were forced to live away from home to hide from the police, only to be arrested in April 2024 and sentenced to prison six months later.
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