(Minghui.org) A Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province, resident, was recently sentenced to ten months for practicing Falun Gong. Another local resident stood trial in November 2023 and is now awaiting the verdict.
Below are details of their cases.
Mr. Li Yilong Sentenced to Ten Months
Mr. Li Yilong was arrested at his employer-provided dorm around 5 a.m. on June 16, 2022. The police searched his residence without showing any legal documents. He was taken to the Pencheng Police Station in Ruichang City, about 30 miles from Jiujiang. He was handcuffed to metal chairs and interrogated for over 20 hours. Due to his poor health, he was released on bail two days later after he was denied admission by the local detention centers.
Torture reenactment: Restrained in a metal chair.
The police arrested Mr. Li again on July 6, 2023. The mental pressure caused Mr. Li to have dangerously high blood pressure and the police had to release him.
Mr. Li received a call from the police on September 7 and was ordered to report to the Yongxiu County Court the next day for a hearing. The police threatened to arrest him if he didn’t show up.
Mr. Li went to the court the next morning. The court appointed a lawyer to enter a guilty plea for him. His wife and a village official were allowed to observe the hearing.
Before the hearing started, the presiding judge demanded that Mr. Li sign statements to renounce Falun Gong. He said that he would only proceed with the hearing if Mr. Li signed the statements. He added that he would give Mr. Li a lighter sentence if he signed the documents, or else they would take him into custody that day. Mr. Li refused to comply or plead guilty. Just as he started to defend his innocence, the judge interrupted him and adjourned the hearing.
Mr. Li mistook the end of that day’s hearing for a recess so he waited. After two hours, the session still did not resume. He then realized the hearing concluded for the day. He got ready to leave, but a judge spotted him and ordered him to return to the courtroom to wait without telling him what else was there for him to do that day. Mr. Li followed the judge’s order, only to lose consciousness and fall hard on the ground in the courtroom shortly afterward due to mental stress. He didn’t regain consciousness for a long time. The court did not call for any medical assistance or call an ambulance. Mr. Li returned home later that day.
Mr. Li was summoned to the court on December 2, 2023. He went there with his wife. The judge Zhang Lingling handed him a ten-month prison sentence with a 4,000-yuan fine. Other judges who signed the verdict included Cai Mengyi, Jiang Ying, Zhong Guobiao, and Hu Qin. Mr. Li refused to sign the verdict when prompted by judge Zhang. He appealed the verdict and is now awaiting the result.
Ms. Luo Meilin Awaits Verdict
Ms. Luo Meilin, a food vendor in her 50s, went to a park for a walk around 8 a.m. on July 20, 2023. As soon as she arrived, a police car pulled over. Several officers got out and handcuffed and arrested her. She later confirmed the officers were from the Chaisang District Domestic Security Office.
The police revealed that they received a tip from a person surnamed Wu about Ms. Luo’s distributing Falun Gong materials. The police raided her home when no one was around. Her Falun Gong books and music player that she used to do the Falun Gong exercises were confiscated.
A Yongxiu County Court judge heard Ms. Luo’s case in mid-November 2023 at the Jiujiang City Detention Center, where she has been detained since her arrest. The judge ordered her to plead guilty to practicing Falun Gong. She refused. According to her husband, sister, and nephew who attended the hearing, Ms. Luo appeared to be in low spirits after months of detention. The judge said he would likely sentence her to a term no longer than three years.
All Falun Gong practitioners detained at the Jiujiang City Detention Center are now facing strict management. Ms. Luo’s family is very worried about whether she will be tortured there.
Related reports:
Jiangxi Man on Trial for Practicing Falun Gong Faints While Waiting for Judge’s Instruction
Jiangxi Woman Detained for More Than 3 Months for Practicing Falun Gong
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