(Minghui.org) A 67-year-old former senior police commissioner was sentenced to 3.5 years in prison in early December 2021 for practicing Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Ms. Xu Lihua, of Changsha City, Hunan Province, was stopped by over 20 plainclothes officers, including Zou Jun, Ou Lijun and Huang Zejun from the Xihu Police Station, when she returned home with her family at around 6 p.m. on October 27, 2020. Her Falun Gong books, computer, printer and some cash were confiscated. According to an insider, the police had sneaked into her home a few months ago for a brief search, when no one was at home.
Ms. Xu’s arrest was part of a police sweep of at least 17 local Falun Gong practitioners. Most of them also had their Falun Gong books, computers, and printers confiscated. The police revealed that they had been monitoring the practitioners’ phone calls and online activities for a long time and they were following orders from above to arrest them.
Ms. Xu was interrogated at the Xihu Police Station overnight and taken to the Changsha City No. 4 Detention Center on the next day. After a year of detention, she aged quickly due to the abuse in custody. She developed high blood pressure, together with vision and hearing loss. The detention center not only refused to release her on bail to seek medical treatment, but also denied her family visits.
For writing a letter to the prosecutor, urging him to dismiss Ms. Xu’s case, her daughter was reported to the police, had her home ransacked and held at the Liuyang Lockup for seven days. Meanwhile, the police constantly followed, harassed and intimidated her family.
Ms. Wu appeared in court on December 7, 2021. She walked into the court room with the help of two police officers. The judge frequently interrupted her self-defense and wrapped up the trial in less than one hour, sentencing her to 3.5 years.
Outside the courthouse, the authorities set up fences around and had armed police patrolling. Everyone entering the courthouse had to have an ID check and be escorted by a court staff member, which wasn’t required for other cases.
Life Saved Twice by Practicing Falun Gong
Ms. Xu used to work at Hunan Police College as a senior police commissioner. Due to years of hard work, she suffered various ailments, including lumbar muscle strain, bone hyperplasia and rheumatism. Six months after she took up Falun Gong in 1998, she was fully recovered. She also changed her competitive personality and became considerate of others.
With the onset of the persecution a year later, Ms. Xu was pressured into giving up the practice, due to her profession as a police officer. Many of the ailments that were cured by Falun Gong relapsed years later and the doctor once warned that she may not live past 60.
Concerned about her health, she began to practice Falun Gong again and saw quick improvement. She was grateful for Falun Gong and shared her story with her students. A student reported her to the police, which resulted in 15 days detention of her. At the end of the detention, she was taken to the local brainwashing center and detained there for another month. The police continued to monitor her after she was released.
Perpetrators’ contact information:
Zou Jun (邹军), officer of Xihu Police Station: +86-18867409159Ou Lijun (欧立军), officer of Xihu Police Station: +86-13974804293Huang Zejun (黄泽军), officer of Xihu Police Station: +86-18874735320Hu Haijun (胡海军), prosecutor of Liuyang Procuratorate: +86-15874026868He Chunhua (何春华), judge of Liuyang Court: +86-18817130901
(More perpetrators’ contact information is available in the original Chinese article.)
Related reports:
Ten Hunan Residents Detained for Nearly a Year for Their Faith
15 Hunan Residents Face Predetermined Prison Sentences for Practicing Falun Gong
Changsha, Hunan Province: 15 Face Trial, a 16th Has Been Imprisoned, All for Their Shared Faith
Hunan Police Refuse to Meet with Falun Gong Practitioners’ Lawyers
Updates on Falun Gong Practitioners Targeted in Changsha City, Hunan Province Group Arrest
13 Hunan Residents Detained Incommunicado for Two Months and Counting
Changsha City, Hunan Province: Fourteen Arrested and One Harassed for Their Faith
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