(Minghui.org) A Tianjin man was sentenced to 7.5 years on November 8, 2024, for raising awareness about the Chinese Communist Party’s persecution of his faith, Falun Gong.
Mr. Kong Fanwei, 60, was arrested at a community fair on the early morning of July 3, 2024, for exchanging paper currency printed with information about Falun Gong and talking to people about the persecution. Due to strict information censorship in China, Falun Gong practitioners are using grassroots channels and creative ways, such as printing information on paper currency, to counteract the persecution.
Officers from the Chengguan Town Police Station broke into Mr. Kong’s home at around 9 a.m. While most of the officers were searching his place, two officers stood outside and forbade Mr. Kong’s family members, who shared the residence with him, from going inside. The police didn’t leave until 3 p.m. Mr. Kong’s computer, printer, and Falun Gong informational materials were confiscated. He was taken to the Yangcun Detention Center in the evening.
The Wuqing District Court held a virtual hearing of Mr. Kong’s case on November 8, 2024, without informing his family, and sentenced him to 7.5 years. He was admitted to Binhai Prison the next day.
Mr. Kong took up Falun Gong on December 15, 1998. He soon quit many harmful habits such as smoking, drinking, gambling and fighting with others. Many of his family members and neighbors were impressed by his changes. After the persecution started in 1999, he has been targeted several times for upholding his faith.
For filing a criminal complaint against Jiang Zemin, the former head of the Chinese Communist Party who ordered the persecution, Mr. Kong was arrested at home on July 9, 2015, by officers of the Chengguan Town Police Station. They raided his place and confiscated two Falun Gong books, a box of informational materials, six flash drives, and two network interface controllers.
The police also forced Mr. Kong to submit to a video/voice recording on November 11, 2016.
Related Report:Police Arrest Practitioners for Filing Criminal Complaints Against Jiang Zemin