(Minghui.org) Ms. Du Qingxiu, an English teacher at Linggang Middle School in Lingyuan, Liaoning Province, was sentenced to six years imprisonment on April 15, 2013, by officials from the Lingyuan City Court. Her family and neighbors were shocked that she received such a harsh sentence for simply for sending text messages clarifying the truth about Falun Gong to several officials in the local justice department.
A provincial justice officer was furious when he received the messages and ordered officials from the Chaoyang Justice Department and Lingyuan Domestic Security Division to investigate this. Ms. Du was arrested at 4 p.m. on September 30, 2012. Her home was ransacked and they confiscated 18,800 yuan, five cell phones and a printer that was used by her child to do homework.
Wang Guilin, the head of the Lingyuan Domestic Security Division, colluded with officials from the Justice Department in an attempt to sentence Ms. Du. Local practitioners made phone calls to these officials and mailed truth-clarification articles to them. Ms. Du's husband hired a lawyer from Beijing to represent her in court.
Officials from the Lingyuan Court held a secret trial for Ms. Du on the morning of April 12, 2013 at Xidayingzi in Chaoyang City. The court session was not open to the general public, with the exception of several family members who were allowed to attend. Many agents from the Liaoning Political and Legal Committee, the Chaoyang Political and Legal Committee, the Chaoyang Intermediate Court and officials from the Chaoyang Procuratorate were present. Forty guards were on duty for the proceedings. Wang Guilin was also there.
Ms. Du's lawyer entered a plea of “not-guilty” for his client, stating that the charges against his client were unlawful. He pointed out that all charges imposed on Falun Gong practitioners should not be charged as being criminal, as it actually relates to freedom of belief. The lawyer suggested that the court follow the constitution and act according to the law. The judge remained silent after hearing this. However, three days after the trial, Ms. Du was secretly sentenced to six years in prison.
