(Minghui.org) It has recently been confirmed by Minghui.org that two Yakeshi City, Inner Mongolia residents have been sentenced to 7 and 7.5 years for their shared faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Mr. Guo Changsuo was arrested during a police sweep on April 8, 2023 and Mr. Sun Wentian was arrested almost two weeks later on April 19, 2023. They were held in the Yakeshi City Detention Center and later indicted by the Yakeshi City Procuratorate. The Yakeshi City Court sentenced Mr. Guo to 7 years and Mr. Sun to 7.5 years on July 9, 2024. They appealed with the Hulunbuir Intermediate Court, which ordered a retrial of the case.
During the retrial, Mr. Guo and Mr. Sun’s family defenders entered not guilty pleas for them. The practitioners also testified in their own defense. The judge didn’t interrupt their defense as is commonly done in hearings of Falun Gong practitioners.
After the retrial, the practitioners’ families also submitted letters to the judge, describing how Falun Gong is freely practiced around the world and the lack of any legal basis for the persecution of Falun Gong in China. The judge still handed down the same prison sentences to both practitioners.
The practitioners appealed again. Presiding judge Miao Huanchun of the appeals court refused to hold an opening hearing for the case, and ruled to uphold the verdicts on September 23, 2024, without informing the practitioners’ family defenders. When the family defenders found out about the sentencing and went to the court to inquire about the situation, they were surprised to be told that their representation of their loved ones had been suspended, yet the court refused to provide any supporting documents for the decision.
The family hired lawyers to visit the practitioners to find out more about the situation, only to find that the court had ordered the detention center to deny the practitioners’ lawyers from visiting them. The court also relayed the message to the lawyers that if the practitioners intend to file a motion to reconsider the case, they should do so with the prison, as the court itself was no longer in charge of the case.
In addition to Mr. Guo and Mr. Sun, another two Falun Gong practitioners arrested on April 8 have also been sentenced to prison: Ms. Zhang Liyan has received a 4.5-year term and Ms. Yang Shuqin was given a 3-year term.
Yakeshi City, Inner Mongolia: Two Falun Gong Practitioners Sentenced, Three Await Verdicts