(Minghui.org) Ms. Chen Lijun became disabled at the Jinzhou Women's Detention Center. The 62-year-old woman was sentenced to two years at the Liaoning Province Women's Prison by the Guta District Court of Jinzhou City because she practices Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese regime for the past 19 years.
Ms. Chen and two elderly practitioners, Ms. Zhang Fengyun and Ms. Pei Ruifen, were reported to police for distributing Falun Gong informational materials near the Jinzhou Meteorological Observatory on August 9, 2017. Officers from the Zhongtun Police Station and the Guta Police Branch Department brought the women to the Jinzhou Women’s Detention Center after interrogating them.
The police ransacked Ms. Chen's home. Her husband later discovered that they had taken 3,000 yuan. The following day he went to the police department and asked about his wife. The police returned her cell phone, ID card, and the 500 yuan which Ms. Chen had been carrying on her.
Ms. Zhang Fengyun's husband went to the police department to demand that his wife be released. He said, “I was a policeman for over 40 years. I have never seen the police taking an 80-year-old lady to a detention center just because she distributed a few brochures.” Heavily pressured by her family, the police released Ms. Zhang after 37 days.
Ms. Chen and Ms. Pei were indicted by the Guta District Procuratorate on December 1, 2017. They were tried at the Jinzhou City Detention Center by the Guta District Court on the morning of December 15. Ms. Chen was sentenced to two years in prison. Ms. Pei was sentenced to three years in prison, but with a four-year probation.
Ms. Chen's former kidney disorder recurred while in detention. She needs two people to support her to walk. Despite her frail condition, the authorities still plan to send her to the Liaoning Province Women's Prison.
