(Minghui.org) Three residents of Hefei City, Anhui Province, were admitted to the Anhui Province Women’s Prison in early 2024 to serve jail terms handed down in 2023 for their shared faith in Falun Gong, a mind-body practice that has been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party since July 1999.

The Shushan District Court in Hefei City convicted the three Falun Gong practitioners in 2023 (exact date unknown), giving Ms. Xu Ping two years, Ms. Zhu Ruiying, 78, one year, and Ms. Sun Fangyun eight months. All three were initially allowed to serve their sentences outside of prison due to health reasons, but were taken back into custody in 2024. Ms. Zhu was arrested a few days before the Lantern Festival on February 24, 2024. Ms. Sun was arrested on March 5, 2024. It is unclear when Ms. Xu was taken back into custody. 

The three women’s sentencing stemmed from their initial arrests in 2021. Both Ms. Zhu and Ms. Sun were arrested on April 21, 2021, by the Xiaoyaojin Police. During the interrogation, the police revealed that they had been monitoring the women for more than two months. They produced photos showing Ms. Zhu and Ms. Sun shopping for groceries, walking on the street, and talking to passersby.

The local detention center declined to admit Ms. Zhu and Ms. Sun due to their poor health. The police released them under house arrest. It is unclear when exactly they were later indicted, tried, or sentenced.

Ms. Sun was also arrested in 2021, but the exact time is unknown. She was later released on bail. The police installed a surveillance camera at her door. The Shushan District Procuratorate indicted her in mid-October 2021 and she stood trial on November 23, 2022. 

Prior to their latest sentencing, Ms. Zhu was previously sentenced to 3 years in 2013 and Ms. Sun to 10 years in 2009.