(Minghui.org) Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Wang Xiuzhen, 62, was sentenced to three years in prison by the Weidu District Court on July 14, 2016. Ms. Wang is being held in the Xuchang City Detention Center.
Wang Wenhui, director of the Weidu District 610 Office, had several propaganda billboards erected in September 2015 which slandered Falun Gong and its founder. He also ordered the Xiguan Police Department to send plainclothes officers to monitor the billboards and arrest Falun Gong practitioners who tried to remove them. Wang Wenhui bragged that he had designed the contents of the billboards.
Ms. Wang was arrested on October 10, 2015, while she was attempting to remove one of the boards. Her home was ransacked, and her arrest was approved retroactively several days later. Wang Wenhui provided testimony that can be found in the case file.
Ms. Wang's case was tried on April 15, 2016, in the Weidu District Court. Ms. Wang's attorney pleaded not guilty on her behalf, but the court ignored his defense and sentenced Ms. Wang to a three-year prison term.
Previously Detained Three Times, Fired from Job, Home Ransacked
Ms. Wang is know by her neighbors as a good and warm-hearted person who likes to help others. She started practicing Falun Gong in 1996 and soon recovered from many illnesses, including colitis, arthritis, lower back pain, and cerebral vascular sclerosis. She was named a model worker by her workplace managers in 1998.
After the persecution of Falun Gong started in July 1999, Ms. Wang was arrested and detained several times for her belief.
Ms. Wang went to Beijing to appeal for the right to practice Falun Gong on May 11, 2000, and was arrested at Tiananmen Square. While in custody, a police officer picked up a chair and slammed it onto her head. Blood shot out like a spring. The blood was all over her head, face, neck, and clothing. She was sent back to Henan Province and taken to the Changge Detention Center, where she was held for 37 days and fined 2,000 yuan to cover the transportation cost for the police. On the sixth day of her detention, she was fired from her job.
Ms. Wang's husband had been ill for a long time and was often hospitalized. His workplace was not doing well and could not pay his salary. Their child was in school and also needed funds. After Ms. Wang was released from the detention center, she sold steamed buns on the street to make a living. Her family was having a very hard time financially.
Wen Jianwei, head of the Political Security Section of Weidu District Police Department, led five officers to Ms. Wang's home on June 29, 2001. They ransacked the home and took her to Xuchang City Detention Center. Because she would not give up her faith, she was illegally detained for more than four months. Her family lost their only source of income. Her husband was then hospitalized again. Her son was in school, but had to take care of his father at the same time. They had to borrow money in order to pay the medical expenses.
Sun Lina from the Political Security Section of the Weidu District Police Department, led several officers on August 5, 2006, to break into Ms. Wang's home. They ransacked the home, tossing everything around for more than four hours. They could not find what they were looking for and eventually left. To avoid further persecution, Ms. Wang left home and stayed away for several years.
Ms. Wang returned in October 2009, and soon after several people from the police station and local residential committee went to her home to harass her.
Ms. Wang and her family were busy painting and decorating the room where her son's wedding would be held on July 12, 2012. Officers from Xuchang City Police Department, including Geng Baoxi and Xu Yanli, forced their way into the home and ransacked it again. They confiscated Falun Gong books and other personal belongings. Before leaving, they threatened to arrest Ms. Wang again.
Ms. Wang was reported for distributing Shen Yun Performing Arts DVDs on June 12, 2014, and was arrested by officers from Dongcheng District Police Station. She was held in the Yulin Detention Center for 13 days.
People responsible for the persecution:Wang Wenhui (王文辉), director of Weidu District 610 Office: +86-156-37445872 (cell)Guo Yan (郭艳), presiding judge of Weidu District Court: +86-374-3399163(More perpetrators' contact information available in the original Chinese article.)
