(Minghui.org) Five Falun Gong practitioners were sentenced in the Lianshan District Court in Huludao, Liaoning Province, in July 2013 by the local Political and Legal Affairs Committee and the 610 Office.
Mr. Zhang Chengjie was sentenced to 12 years in prison, Ms. Yang Kaixia to 5 years, Mr. Liu Junhua to 5 years, Mr. Zhang Zhimeng to four and half years, and Ms. Shang Lanling to 3 years.
Mr. Zhang Chengjie, Mr. Liu Junhua, and Mr. Zhang Zhimeng were taken to Jinzhou Prison on August 13. Ms. Yang Kaixia and Ms. Shang Lanling were taken to the Liaoning Province Women's Prison.
Because Ms. Yang failed the physical, the prison refused to admit her. She was taken back to the Huludao Detention Center. She was again taken to the Liaoning Province Women's Prison on August 20.
The five practitioners from Huludao were arrested on February 25, 2012. That same day, nearly 100 practitioners were arrested in Hebei, Shandong, and Liaoning provinces. The reason for this mass arrest was because empty DVD boxes were found in the homes of Falun Gong practitioners.
Illegal Trial in Lianshan District Court
After 14 months of detention, the five practitioners were brought to trial in the Lianshan District Court on April 24, 2013.
Four lawyers from Beijing defended them. The lawyers argued that the law penalizes only criminal behavior, not the thought one holds, as having belief is not considered a crime. The lawyers also argued that practicing Falun Gong is not against the law and citizens' private possessions are protected by the Chinese Constitution. The lawyers arguments left the prosecutor speechless.
It is rumored that the Huludao Politics and Law Committee and 610 Office rejected the court's proposed ruling, claiming that the sentences were too light.
For 14 years, Huludao Politics and Law Committee and the 610 Office planned and executed the persecution of practitioners in Huludao. Many practitioners were sentenced to prison terms.
Over 20 practitioners, including Wang Huachen, Chen Dewen, Fan Dezhen, Shi Yingchun, Wu Guoliang, Jin Lifeng, Huang Lizhong, Su Juzhen, Liu Liyun and Song Caihong died as result of the persecution.
Additionally, several thousand practitioners were taken to prisons, labor camps, detention centers, and brainwashing centers.
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