(Minghui.org) In the first half of 2026, 679 instances of Falun Gong practitioners 60 or older being persecuted were reported.
Among them, 44 practitioners passed away after suffering from persecution; 142 were sentenced to prison; 333 were illegally arrested; and 160 were harassed by the authorities.
Persecution of Falun Gong Practitioners Aged 60 and Above in the First Half of 2026
Below are details of selected persecution cases.
1. Deaths in Custody
Retired College Professor Dies at 88 While Facing Trial
Ms. Tang Xuzhen, 88, of Luzhou City, Sichuan Province died on December 18, 2025, while still facing trial for her faith in Falun Gong.
Ms. Tang Xuzhen
Ms. Tang, a retired university professor, was getting off a bus on April 8, 2022, when she was taken away by two plainclothes officers and interrogated at the Lianhuachi Police Station.
In the afternoon, her son was allowed to pick her up, but police officers from their home district followed them back and raided Ms. Tang’s home without showing their IDs or a search warrant.
The police returned the next day and ordered Ms. Tang to sign some paperwork. She refused, so they made her husband sign it. However, he did not know what he was signing due to cognitive impairment from a head injury, and was later listed as a prosecution witness against his wife.
Prior to the latest persecution, Ms. Tang was once given three years of forced labor in 2001 and sentenced to three and a half years in prison following an arrest in 2009.
Shandong Woman in Her 70s Dies After Decades of Persecution
Ms. Zou Peixia, in her 70s, from Dongying City, Shandong Province, died around March 20, 2026, after suffering decades of persecution for her faith.
Ms. Zou and her husband, Mr. Geng Lutang, took up Falun Gong around 1996, and were repeatedly targeted after the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) ordered the nationwide persecution campaign to eradicate Falun Gong on July 20, 1999.
Ms. Zou was given three years of forced labor in October 2000, and endured various forms of abuse in the Wangcun Women’s Labor Camp, leading to a mental disorder. After her release in March 2022, she was formally diagnosed with severe depression.
The couple was arrested on September 17, 2019, while talking to people about Falun Gong. Mr. Geng was taken to the Hekou Detention Center and Ms. Zou to the Dongying City Detention Center.
Mr. Geng was released on bail on October 20, 2019, after his blood pressure shot up to a dangerously high level. The couple was tried by the Dongying City Court in a virtual hearing on November 2, 2020, and later both were sentenced to three years and three months in prison with a 30,000-yuan fine. Their pensions were suspended at an unknown time.
2. Imprisonment
94-Year-Old Incapacitated Man Abused and Not Allowed to Talk to Anyone While in Jail
Mr. Xu Shujiu, 94, of Jixi City, Heilongjiang Province, has become incapacitated following ongoing abuse while serving a three-year term.
Mr. Xu and his late wife, Ms. Wang Chuanyun, were arrested on August 30, 2017, for hanging up banners about the persecution. Each was sentenced to three years and fined 10,000 yuan in early September 2021.
The couple went into hiding, but the police found and kept harassing them. Ms. Wang passed away on September 16, 2025, succumbing to mental distress. She was around 86.
Mr. Xu’s health continued to deteriorate. He became bedridden and incontinent, yet eight officers took him to hospital on a gurney on April 20, 2026. The officers watched him around the clock and installed a surveillance camera in his ward. Mr. Xu was admitted to the Jixi City Prison in an ambulance three days later. He was transferred to the Tailai Prison on June 30 and held at the infirmary division.
When Mr. Xu’s family visited, he told them the situation was “absolutely brutal.” He asked for money so he could buy extra food. The visitation room was on the fourth floor. He was so weak he could barely make it upstairs.
Ms. Hu Kaijun, 72, of Chongqing was taken into custody on June 8, 2026, to serve a five-year term for her faith given in 2021. Ms. Hu’s incapacitated husband was sent to a nursing home following her imprisonment.
Ms. Hu, a retired employee of the Chongqing Wanzhou District General Construction Company, was arrested on July 17, 2020 and held at a brainwashing center for 12 days before being released on a one-year bail. The Kaizhou District Court sentenced her to five years with a 15,000-yuan fine on December 28, 2021. She continues to appeal but the verdict remains upheld.
Ms. Hu’s husband was diagnosed with late-stage throat cancer in 2014 and can no longer talk after a laryngectomy. He also needs a special diet so Ms. Hu had been caring for him. His condition worsened after her arrest. To make Ms. Hu agree to report to prison, the authorities made various promises about her husband’s care. When that did not work, they froze all her bank accounts and her WeChat payment account.
On June 8, 2026, while Ms. Hu was accompanying her husband to the hospital, court staffers arrested her without informing her husband where they were taking her. After Mr. Hu’s husband returned home, the street committee arranged to send him to a nursing home.
Prior to her latest sentence, Ms. Hu was given a one-year term at the Chongqing City Women’s Forced Labor Camp in 2010.
85-Year-Old Retired Nurse Jailed to Serve a 1-Year Term Given in 2022
Ms. Li Yanyun, 85, of Kunming City, Yunnan Province, is serving time for her faith in Falun Gong at the Yunnan Province Second Women’s Prison.
Ms. Li, a retired nurse, was arrested on September 28, 2021, and released on bail hours later. She was sentenced to one year with a 2,000-yuan fine on November 16, 2022. Due to her advanced age and poor health, she was allowed to postpone serving time.
Ms. Li’s friends lost contact with her around late March 2026 and found out recently that she had been imprisoned.
Prior to her latest persecution episode, Ms. Li was arrested in 2013. Officers from the Dongluqiao Police Station and the Xishan District Domestic Security Office also raided her home.
Her husband, who had just had surgery for his coronary heart disease, was so terrified that he went into shock and died shortly afterwards.
71-Year-Old Ailing Woman Now Serving a Three-Year Term Given in 2020
Ms. Gao Jiping, 71, of Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province, was admitted to the Shanxi Province Women’s Prison on June 6, 2026, to serve a three-year term she was sentenced to in 2020 for practicing Falun Gong.
Ms. Gao was originally arrested on September 7, 2019, but released on bail 10 days later due to poor health. The court sentenced her to three years on September 23, 2020.
Due to her high blood pressure, severe anemia, and uremia, however, she was denied admission to the Taiyuan City Fourth Detention Center five times. Using their connections, the police succeeded on their sixth attempt on March 4, 2026.
Ms. Gao was transferred to the Shanxi Province Women’s Prison on June 6. She is being held in the “strict management” team and denied family visits or phone calls.
3. Sentenced
13 Days After Latest Arrest, 77-Year-Old Shandong Woman Secretly Sentenced to Three Years
Ms. Liu Yulian’s family was kept in the dark regarding her status after the 77-year-old woman was arrested for her faith in Falun Gong. The police would only say, “She has been sentenced to three years.”
Ms. Liu of Linqing City, Shandong Province, was on her way to work on May 12, 2026, when she was seized by Gao Haimin, head of the Linqing City Domestic Security Office, and officers from the Bachalu Police Station.
Ms. Liu’s family confirmed she was admitted to the Shandong Province Women’s Prison on May 25. They suspect she was denied due process as is common in Falun Gong cases. They still don’t know if she was ever formally charged, appointed a lawyer, or given a fair trial.
78-Year-Old Woman Sentenced to Three Years
Ms. Chen Suyuan, 78, of Anshan City, Liaoning Province, is appealing a three-year prison term for practicing Falun Gong.
On January 20, 2026, Ms. Chen found two Falun Gong booklets lying on the ground near an apartment building. Two women suddenly seized her, accusing her of distributing the booklets in the building. Officers were then dispatched from the Shuangshan Police Station to arrest Ms. Chen and she was taken to the Anshan City First Detention Center.
When her lawyer visited in early February, she was extremely weak and had to be carried out by two people. She said the police dragged and pulled her on the way to a physical exam, causing severe injuries. She now relies on others for care.
Ms. Chen was indicted on April 2. She stood trial on April 22 and was sentenced to three years on June 1. She has appealed to the Anshan City Intermediate Court.
Prior to this arrest, Ms. Chen was arrested repeatedly for her faith. She was arrested in October 25, 2012 while walking with her husband to a supermarket. Terrified by the police, her husband died a month later.
Ms. Chen was arrested again in April 15, 2020 and sentenced to one and a half years by the Lishan District Court on August 10 in the same year.
72-Year-Old Jiangxi Woman Given Fourth Prison Sentence
Ms Wu Zhiping, 72, of Nanchang City, Jiangxi Province, was sentenced to more than three years because she practices Falun Gong, Minghui.org learned recently.
Ms. Wu Zhiping
Ms. Wu, a retired worker at the Nanchang Steel Factory, was arrested on October 9, 2024, while talking to people about Falun Gong. The arresting officers took her to the Qingyunpu District Brainwashing Center. Not long after, they moved her to the Nanchang City Detention Center.
It is unclear when Ms. Wu was indicted, tried, or sentenced. Her exact prison term also remains to be investigated. She has likely been admitted to the Jiangxi Province Women’s Prison.
Prior to this latest persecution episode, Ms. Wu was sentenced three times for her faith, and served a 3-year term from 2008 to 2011, a 3.5-year term from 2015 to 2018, and a 1.5-year term from 2021 to 2023. She was also detained at various facilities multiple times, including a psychiatric hospital in 2021, even though she had no mental illness.
The police also pressured Ms. Wu’s daughter to get her mother to renounce Falun Gong, causing the daughter to become ill and need surgery. Afterwards, she begged Ms. Wu that they should disown each other. Ms. Wu understood and agreed.
4. Arrested and Harassed
Widowed by the Persecution of Falun Gong, 86-Year-Old Woman Now Arrested
Ms. Luo Shuhua, 86, of Xinxiang City, Henan Province, was arrested at home on March 13, 2026, for practicing Falun Gong. As she resisted the arrest, the police took her away in an ambulance. They claimed she had a “shadow on her lung” and took her to the Xinxiang Infectious Diseases Hospital. They also threatened to detain her after treatment.
Ms. Luo’s ordeal stemmed from an earlier arrest in December 2020, after a surveillance camera recorded her distributing Falun Gong materials. Officers took her to the Xinxiang City Detention Center. Due to health reasons, she was denied admission and released under “residential surveillance” on December 4, 2020. Her case status was changed to “on bail” on May 3, 2021. They made a few more attempts to detain her, but failed.
The Tiexi Police Station submitted Ms. Luo’s case to the Weihui City Procuratorate in 2024. She was indicted and faced trial by the Weihui City Court which is under the jurisdiction of Xinxiang. It is unclear whether she was sentenced.
Prior to her latest arrest, Ms. Luo had been repeatedly arrested and harassed. Her husband, Mr. Ma Yunxian, also a practitioner, was forced to live away from home but died in 2008, aged 79, due to mental distress and physical torture during previous detentions.
82-Year-Old Chongqing Woman Arrested Again for Practicing Falun Gong
Ms. Zhou Liangrong, 82, of Chongqing was arrested on June 13, 2026, for distributing informational materials about Falun Gong.
Ms. Zhou is currently held at the Beibei Police Hospital. The police claimed she had heart failure and needed treatment. Her family was denied visitation.
Ms. Zhou is a retired employee of the Jiangbei Yuzui Orchard. Her grandfather was an influential banker who left the family a substantial inheritance. After the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) came to power, local officials seized their assets and placed the family under surveillance. In 1996, Ms. Zhou and six of her seven sisters took up Falun Gong and stopped trying to get the family’s assets back.
From 1999, the Zhou sisters were targeted for upholding their faith. One of the sisters, Ms. Zhou Liangzhu, was arrested for visiting her sister, and was given a 15-month labor camp term. When released in 2002, she was on the verge of death due to torture and died 10 months later.
Chongqing Police Hire Locksmith to Break into 77-Year-Old Widow’s Home
In February and April of 2026, police in Chongqing broke into and raided the home of 77-year-old Ms. Xu Mingjin.
Police and staff from community office went to Ms. Xu’s residence on February 28, 2026, accusing her of being involved in a scam and claiming to have a subpoena. As she wouldn’t let them in, the police called a locksmith to pry open the door before barging in. Ms. Xu was dragged outside while her home was raided. She was taken to the police department for questioning and not released until after 10 p.m.
Nine days later, on March 9, 2026, community police officers harassed Ms. Xu again. On April 1, 2026, police showed up at Ms. Xu’s home and ordered her to accompany them to the police station to collect her belongings. She refused, saying to send the items back to her. They again hired a locksmith, broke in, arrested Ms. Xu, and took her to the police station.
The police later informed Ms. Xu that she has been given administrative detention, but due to her advanced age, it wouldn’t be enforced. She refused to sign any paperwork. Against her will, the police took photos of Ms. Xu, collected her fingerprints, and took a blood sample before releasing her after 5 p.m.
Prior to this most recent incident, Ms. Xu had already served a one-year term in a forced labor camp, been held at a brainwashing center, and been detained and harassed several other times. Her husband was under such tremendous mental distress that his heart condition and high blood pressure worsened, and he passed away in 2013.
74-Year-Old Woman Denied Bail Despite Stroke Symptoms, Faces Prison Sentence for Her Faith
Ms. Chen Yanwei, 74, of Mudanjiang City, Heilongjiang Province, had a stroke while being detained for her faith in Falun Gong. The authorities refused to release her and still planned to sentence her to prison.
Ms. Chen was most recently arrested at home on October 29, 2025, by five officers from the Dongan District Police Department. She was taken to the Jiangnandiyi Police Station for interrogation. The police collected her fingerprints and blood samples, scanned her irises, and recorded her gait. Then she was taken to the Railway Hospital for a physical exam which revealed high blood pressure, as well as abnormal heart rate and urine test results. Despite her compromised health, the police took Ms. Chen to a detention center.
Ms. Chen was later indicted and a pre-trial meeting on the case was held at Aimin District Court on January 20, 2026. A hearing was scheduled for February 4, but later postponed to March 27. It is unclear if it actually took place.
Ms. Chen’s blood pressure continued to rise while in custody. The detention center guards ordered her family to send her medicine. They refused without a proper medical evaluation.
Her family was informed of her serious condition on April 17 2026. The guards called the family again on April 24 and said Ms. Chen’s condition was critical and she needed immediate treatment. The doctor later concluded she recently had infarction of the right cerebellum.
Ms. Chen is currently held at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Mudanjiang Medical University, which is affiliated with the Mudanjiang Municipal Police Department. Ms. Chen’s family repeatedly demanded the authorities release her, but their requests have been denied.
5. Financial Persecution
Ms. Cong Peishan, 87, of Tianjin is struggling to make ends meet after her pension was stopped in March 2024 because of her faith in Falun Gong.
Ms. Cong was sentenced to four years on December 24, 2000, and subjected to various kinds of torture in jail. She was arrested again in March 2021. Prior to her arrest, Ren Yu, the deputy chief of the Nankai District Sports Center Police Station, ordered her to renounce Falun Gong. When she refused, Ren threatened to have the local court sentence her and her employer strip her of any retirement benefits.
On September 30, 2021, after six months of detention, Ms. Cong was sentenced to three years by the Nankai District Court. She was admitted to Division Five at the Tianjin City Women’s Prison, where she was subjected to torture and forced to take toxic drugs.
Ms. Cong was released in March 2024. Upon returning home, she found out her husband had fallen ill after her sentencing and passed away while she was in prison. Later, she learned that the social security bureau reduced her monthly 8,000 yuan pension to 693 yuan. To get the 693 yuan monthly payment, she had to write a guarantee statement promising not to practice Falun Gong anymore. She refused to comply and has since received no pension benefits.
Ms. Wu Xiulan, 81, of Jinzhou City, Liaoning Province, has had her pension suspended for 10 years because of her faith in Falun Gong. A local court has declined to hear her case against the agency that stopped her retirement benefits.
Ms. Wu retired in 2002 after working 34 years in various local government positions in Jinzhou City. She was arrested in 2015, while putting up self-adhesive posters about Falun Gong and later sentenced to two years. Her pension was suspended starting in 2016. After her release in 2017, she demanded her pension payments be reinstated, but to no avail.
Ms. Wu was arrested again in 2019, when she went to a relative’s home to borrow money. She was given another three-year term and released in 2022. She continued to seek the reinstatement of her pension, but without success.
The financial persecution caused Ms. Wu tremendous difficulty and she has no children to care for her. She often shivered in the cold of winter as she couldn’t afford to repair her broken windows or heater, or the leaking sink and balcony.
On March 3, 2025, Ms. Wu filed an administrative lawsuit demanding the Human Resources and Social Security Bureau return her pension and resume her retirement benefits. The court refused to accept her lawsuit and she dropped the case in September 2025. Ms. Wu intended to withdraw her lawsuit, but then the court said they didn’t have the paperwork. She was thus unable to refile her lawsuit or execute other legal strategies.
Woman in Her 80s Sentenced to Prison, Pension Suspended
For upholding her faith in Falun Gong, Ms. Xiang Aimei, 85, of Huaihua City, Hunan Province, has been sentenced twice and repeatedly harassed. Her pension has been suspended since 2024.
Ms. Xiang, the former deputy mayor of Anjiang Town, Hongjiang City, Hunan Province, was sentenced to three years with a three-year probation in 2008. Details about her first prison sentence are unclear.
Ms. Xiang was arrested again on January 14, 2023, for talking to people about Falun Gong at a market but was released after one day. She returned to the market in May 2023 and was arrested. Four police officers showed up at Ms. Xiang’s home on July 20, 2023, to order her to report to the Hongjiang City Procuratorate. As she wasn’t home, the police told her children they would arrest Ms. Xiang if she didn’t appear at the procuratorate the following day.
The next day the prosecutor ordered her to sign her case document. She refused so the prosecutor threatened to send her to a detention center and said her children’s and grandchildren’s jobs and promotions would be affected. She was allowed to go home, but was placed under house arrest.
Officers repeatedly harassed Ms. Xiang between September and October 2023. She was taken to the Hongjiang City City on October 19, 2023. The police attempted to take her to the detention center after a physical exam, but she was released on bail for health reasons. She was sentenced to one and a half years in April 2024.
The Hongjiang City Police Department forcibly withheld 50% of Ms. Xiang’s pension payments between 2023 and April 2024, totaling 83,000 yuan (US12,350). Shortly after her conviction, her pension was completely stopped. Her family sent financial support to her digital wallet on WeChat but this was frozen too. She was also restricted from traveling by air or train.
72-Year-Old Woman Ordered to Return 18 Years’ Pension Totaling 360k Yuan
Ms. Jiang Yifen, 72, of Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province, was ordered to return 360,000 yuan (US$53,560) of pension payments received over an 18-year period, simply because she was deemed no longer eligible for practicing Falun Gong.
Ms. Jiang, a retired employee of the Heilongjiang Province Polyester Plant, has been repeatedly targeted for upholding her faith. She was arrested in 2001, and later sentenced to four years. Following her latest arrest on March 3, 2022, she was given another three years. She was released from the Heilongjiang Province Women’s Prison on March 2, 2025.
Starting in May 2023, the Acheng District Social Security Center suspended Ms. Jiang’s pension. Her husband’s low retirement income was insufficient so their children had to provide additional financial support.
On May 7, 2026, Ms. Jiang received a letter from the Acheng District Social Security Center, demanding she return the pension issued “by mistake.” The letter provided no legal basis or explanation.
A month later, on June 11, Ms. Jiang got another letter reiterating the previous claim that the pension she had received from June 2005 (when she reached the legal retirement age) to April 2023 (the month before her pension suspension) was a “mistake” and demanding she return all of the funds, totaling 360,440.42 yuan.
The letter stated that if Ms. Jiang objected, she had 60 days to apply for administrative reconsideration with the relevant authority, or file an administrative lawsuit with the Acheng District Court within six months. If she did not take action, the social security center would request permission from the local court to enforce collection of the payment.
Ms. Jiang submitted a written objection to the Acheng District Social Security Center.
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