(Minghui.org) Minghui.org previously reported on the sentencing of six Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, residents, for practicing Falun Gong. Ms. Duan Qiongying and Ms. Li Tao were both given three years and six months. Ms. Yu Chuancheng received three years. Ms. Xu Yueqin and Ms. Luo Yi were sentenced to two years and eight months. Ms. Li Jun was given two years and two months. All the practitioners were also fined between 6,000 and 12,000 yuan. They have appealed the verdicts.
The six practitioners were tried separately in the Wenjiang District Court on July 25, 2024. Wang Ying (a vice president of the court) presided over the trials of Ms. Li Jun, Ms. Yu, and Ms. Duan, and another court vice president, Dong Min, oversaw the trials of the other three practitioners. Judge Hu Weiwei and a third court vice president, Ma Kexi, were present at all six trials.
In this report, we present additional information about the trials and how judge Hu obstructed the practitioners’ legal representations and unlawfully sentenced them.
Family Defenders Not Allowed to Review the Practitioners’ Case Files or Represent Them in Court
After the six practitioners were arrested on May 24, 2023, Ms. Li Jun’s daughter, Ms. Xu’s father-in-law, Ms. Luo’s daughter, and Ms. Li Tao’s husband all applied to be their respective non-lawyer defenders. Judge Hu found all kinds of excuses to deny their applications.
When he rejected Ms. Li Tao’s husband, judge Hu’s argument was that her husband was a prosecution’s witness to her case because he answered the police officer’s questions about his wife’s reading Falun Gong books and doing the exercises at home when he picked up her personal items at the police station.
Ms. Xu’s father-in-law was rejected because he also practices Falun Gong. He wasn’t allowed to attend the hearing either.
Ms. Luo’s daughter was initially approved to be her family defender, but judge Hu did not allow her to review Ms. Luo’s case document and indictment, insisting that only a lawyer could do so. With no other options, Ms. Luo’s daughter hired a lawyer for her. When she went with the lawyer to the court to review her mother’s case document, judge Hu reversed his decision to allow her to be Ms. Hu’s family defender, with the excuse that she was pregnant.
In addition, judge Hu only allowed Ms. Luo’s lawyer to read and hand-copy the case document, without making photocopies or taking pictures of it. The lawyer filed a complaint against Hu, who eventually allowed him to make photocopies, but he was still not allowed to take pictures. Judge Hu also ordered the lawyer to sign a confidentiality agreement.
Ms. Li Jun’s daughter made many requests to review her case document, but judge Hu kept delaying it. Only after the daughter filed several complaints against Hu did he allow the daughter to review the case documents, but without making photocopies or taking pictures of it. She was eventually allowed to defend her mother in court.
Judge Hu also kept ignoring Ms. Li’s daughter’s request to visit her. Because her daughter persistently sought justice for her mother, judge Hu arranged for the daughter to have a virtual meeting with Ms. Li in court. Court clerk Chen Luyao monitored the entire conversation. This was the only time that Ms. Li’s daughter talked to her before the hearing on July 25, 2024.
Family Members Not Allowed to Attend the Hearing
The day of the hearing, the court entrance was guarded by several armed bailiffs. Everyone who entered the building to attend the hearing had to go through two security checks and turn in their IDs and cell phones. The bailiffs checked their names carefully against a list of Falun Gong practitioners who weren’t allowed to attend the hearing. Several practitioners, including a few family members of the practitioners on trial, were stopped at the court entrance. According to those who did attend, the gallery was mostly filled with community workers and interns.
Court Proceedings of Ms. Li Jun, Ms. Yu and Ms. Duan
Ms. Li Jun was the first to be tried on July 25, 2024. She appeared in court around 10 a.m. Her daughter demanded that her inmate’s uniform be removed and that her mother be allowed to wear regular clothes. The judges approved the request.
Ms. Li insisted that she didn’t violate any law in practicing Falun Gong. Her daughter also entered a not guilty plea for her. She argued that there is no legal basis for the persecution and that there is no evidence that shows her mother caused any harm to anyone or anything. The hearing ended around 12 p.m.
That afternoon, the judges rushed through the hearings of Ms. Yu and Ms. Duan, both in their 60s. They then announced the verdicts of the three practitioners.
Court Proceedings of Ms. Xu, Ms. Luo and Ms. Li Tao
Ms. Xu, Ms. Luo and Ms. Li Tao were tried separately after the first three trials that day.
All three practitioners were represented by their lawyers. Ms. Xu’s father-in-law was denied his request to represent her because he also practices Falun Gong. He and his son, Mr. Sun Hao, weren’t allowed to attend the hearing either. Ms. Li’s husband was not allowed to represent her (because the police tricked him into answering questions about Ms. Li’s practicing Falun Gong and listed him as a witness in her case). Her sister applied to be her family defender a few days before the hearing and was approved.
When he noticed Ms. Luo’s daughter sitting with the lawyer, presiding judge Dong ordered her to leave, with the excuse that judge Hu denied her application to be her family defender as she was pregnant.
Ms. Luo’s daughter demanded the judges present the legal basis for their decision. Because she insisted on defending her mother, the judges adjourned the session and asked the daughter to sign a responsibility waiver should anything happen to her during the defense. She was eventually allowed to represent her mother.
The daughter and the lawyer entered a not guilty plea for Ms. Luo. They argued that no law in China has ever criminalized Falun Gong and the prosecutor failed to present evidence to demonstrate how her mother “undermined law enforcement with a cult organization,” the standard pretext used to frame and sentence Falun Gong practitioners in China. The presiding judge Dong kept interrupting their defense and claimed that “the government had long ago decided how to sentence Falun Gong practitioners and we don’t need to discuss that here.” He refused to present the relevant legal basis when he was pressured by Ms. Luo’s daughter.
During Ms. Li’s hearing, her lawyer argued that judge Hu always presented herself as the presiding judge in charge of the case and that the court failed to inform him beforehand, as required by law, that Dong was the presiding judge. At his request, the panel agreed to have Hu and Dong switch their roles.
Ms. Li’s lawyer questioned the prosecutor as to why he first charged the practitioners with “inciting subversion of state power,” and then splitting their joint-case into six individuals cases and changing the charge to “undermining law enforcement with a cult organization.” The prosecutor did not answer the question.
While Ms. Li’s sister defended her, Dong constantly interrupted her.
The hearings ended around 10 p.m. and the judges convicted all three practitioners.
In addition to the six practitioners, two other practitioners, Mr. Sun Hao (not Ms. Xu’s husband) and Mr. Wang Wentao, were also tried by the same Wenjiang District Court on the same day. Mr. Sun was released on bail and Mr. Wang is currently placed on house arrest.
Related Reports:
Six Sichuan Residents Sentenced to Prison for Practicing Falun Gong
Eight Sichuan Residents Face Trial for Their Faith in Falun Gong
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