(Minghui.org) Today's news from China includes incidents of persecution that took place in 15 cities or counties in 10 provinces, where at least 17 practitioners were recently persecuted for their belief.

1. [Jinan City, Shandong Province] Ms. Hou Liling Taken to Prison
2. [Linghai City, Liaoning Province] Mr. Zhou Yonglin's and Wife Ms. Sun Jiping’s Original Verdicts Upheld
3. [Yitong County, Jilin Province] Mr. Dong Weixing Sentenced to Prison
4. [Yanbian Prefecture, Jilin Province] Ms. Cui Qunying Held in Custody
5. [Liaoyuan City, Liaoning Province] Ms. Jiang Yanping Arrested
6. [Shenzhen City, Guangdong Province] Ms. Che Lihua Sentenced to Prison
7. [Tangshan City, Hebei Province] Huang Honglei Arrested
8. [Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province] Ms. Ma Xiujuan’s Case Turned Over to Procuratorate
9. [Zhengzhou City, Henan Province] Mr. Xie Jianxin Arrested
10. [Wuhan City, Hubei Province] Ms. Xiong Hanlian Arrested
11. [Wuhan City, Hubei Province] Ms. Sha Zhaodi Arrested
12. [Pingliang City, Gansu Province] Mr. Liu Yonghong Harassed
13. [Dalian City, Liaoning Province] Ms. Dong Huizhen Tried
14. [Xi’an City, Shaanxi Province] Ms. Lei Xiaoli Arrested
15. [Heihe City, Heilongjiang Province] Ms. Duan Guirong Harassed
16. [Botou City, Hebei Province] Mr. Wang Shuiyong Passed Away Due to Persecution; Daughter Harassed

1. [Jinan City, Shandong Province] Ms. Hou Liling Taken to Prison

Ms. Hou Liling and her daughter from Jinan City, Shandong Province, were followed by officers from the Wenhui Police Station in Yangzhou City, Jiangsu Province, on April 23, 2020. Ms. Hou was talking to people about Falun Gong while traveling in Yangzhou City.

They were arrested by the officers while they ate in a restaurant in Zhenjiang City, Jiangsu Province, on April 25. They were taken to the Yangzhou City Detention Center.

On April 30, Ms. Hou’s daughter was released on bail and returned home due to a physical condition.

Ms. Hou was tried in the detention center in October, and her family members were not allowed to attend the hearing. She was sentenced to a one-year-and-five-month prison term. She was taken to the Nantong Women’s Prison in December.

2. [Linghai City, Liaoning Province] Mr. Zhou Yonglin's and Wife Ms. Sun Jiping’s Original Verdicts Upheld

Mr. Zhou Yonglin and his wife Ms. Sun Jiping were each sentenced to five years in prison and fined 10,000 yuan by the Linghai City Court.

Regardless of the facts and laws, and despite Ms. Sun Jiping’s critical physical condition, the Jinzhou City Intermediate Court upheld the original verdicts on March 26, 2021.

3. [Yitong County, Jilin Province] Mr. Dong Weixing Sentenced to Prison

It was reported recently that Mr. Dong Weixing was sentenced to a one-year-and-six-month prison term. He is being held in the Yitong County Detention Center. His daughter, who was sick, was left unattended.

Mr. Dong worked at the Yitong County Training School. He was arrested by Wang Jiuqing, head of the Yitong County Domestic Security Division, and others on October 10, 2020. He was tried by the Yitong County Court on March 19, 2021.

4. [Yanbian Prefecture, Jilin Province] Ms. Cui Qunying Held in Custody

Ms. Cui Qunying is from Chaoyangchuan Town. Her bag was searched by security personnel when she was about to board the high-speed train at the Yanji West Station, and she was later arrested by State Security personnel. She went on a hunger strike after the arrest. She is currently detained in the Yanji City Field Squadron, Yanbian Brigade, Yanbian Railway Public Security Division.

5. [Liaoyuan City, Liaoning Province] Ms. Jiang Yanping Arrested

Ms. Jiang Yanping from Bolin Town was arrested by officers from the Xiangyang Police Department on April 1, 2021. Someone called and harassed her several times prior to her arrest.

6. [Shenzhen City, Guangdong Province] Ms. Che Lihua Sentenced to Prison

Ms. Che Lihua was reported to the police when she talked to people about Falun Gong in May 2020. She was arrested and held in the Futian District Detention Center. She was transferred to the Nanshan District Detention Center on August 24, 2020.

While in the Nanshan District Detention Center, Ms. Che developed severe hypertension and was hospitalized for 11 days. She wore handcuffs and shackles the entire time that she was in the hospital. Her case was turned over to the Nanshan District Procuratorate. Ms. Che has been sentenced to one year in prison by the Nanshan District Court.

7. [Tangshan City, Hebei Province] Huang Honglei Arrested

Huang Honglei (gender unknown) was arrested on March 31, 2021. Huang is being held in the Laoting County Detention Center.

8. [Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province] Ms. Ma Xiujuan’s Case Turned Over to Procuratorate

Ms. Ma Xiujuan from Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province, was arrested in December 2019 by officers from the Yuanping City Police Department in Shanxi Province across provincial borders. She was released on bail after being held in the Xinzhou Detention Center for 37 days.

A year later, Ms. Ma was summoned several times by the procuratorate. She recently hired a lawyer. On April 6, 2021, the lawyer will go to the Xinfu District Procuratorate of Xinzhou City and request the procuratorate to withdraw the case.

9. [Zhengzhou City, Henan Province] Mr. Xie Jianxin Arrested

Mr. Xie Jianxin, a retired military commander, from the Zhengzhou City Military Retirement Agency in Henan Province, was arrested in Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province in early February 2021

10. [Wuhan City, Hubei Province] Ms. Xiong Hanlian Arrested

Ms. Xiong Hanlian from Wuchang District was arrested by community management personnel in the Jianshe New Village, Yangyuan Sub-district, in late March 2021. Her current whereabouts are unknown.

11. [Wuhan City, Hubei Province] Ms. Sha Zhaodi Arrested

Ms. Sha Zhaodi from Qingshan District was arrested by officers from the Xingouqiao Police Station on March 29, 2021. Her current whereabouts are unknown.

12. [Pingliang City, Gansu Province] Mr. Liu Yonghong Harassed

Mr. Liu Yonghong, an employee of the Zhenghe Middle School in Zhuanglang County, had a conversation in the Nancheng Community of Zhuanglang County with Zhu Yonggang, deputy secretary of the City Political and Legal Affairs Committee, and three others on the afternoon of April 1, 2021. She was accompanied by school principal Wen Xufeng and others from the school.

Zhu said that at the end of June, Gansu Province would implement the “zero-out” policy, and employees who persisted in practicing Falun Gong and refused to be “transformed” would be expelled from their jobs and taken to the provincial legal training class for “transformation.” When Liu Jinping, secretary of the Disciplinary Inspection Committee of the Education Bureau, pressured Mr. Liu to write the “four statements” (similar to the “three statements”), he sternly refused.

13. [Dalian City, Liaoning Province] Ms. Dong Huizhen Tried

Ms. Dong Huizhen was arrested at home on February 14, 2020, by six or seven officers from the Huanghai Road Police Station in the Development Zone. The officers confiscated Falun Dafa books and related items. Ms. Dong returned home at about 2 p.m. that day. Afterwards, she was told she would live under surveillance for six months. Six months later, her case was turned over to the procuratorate and court.

On March 8, 2021, officers called her and told her to go to the police station. When she arrived at the police station Ms. Dong realized that she was to be arrested and taken to the detention center. The officers also forcibly took her to the hospital for a physical exam. The next day, she was taken to the hospital again for a blood test and an electrocardiogram.

Ms. Dong was taken to the Dalian City Detention Center on March 10. The detention center refused to accept her. In the end, the court granted bail, pending trial, with residential surveillance for six months.

Ms. Dong was tried on March 23. She spoke in her own defense during the trial. At the end of the trial, she was told to sign paperwork, which she refused to do. After that she felt weak and slumped into a chair. The court officials called in her husband and let him take Ms. Dong home.

14. [Xi’an City, Shaanxi Province] Ms. Lei Xiaoli Arrested

Ms. Lei Xiaoli from the Taiheju Residential Community, Xinjiamiao Sub-district, was arrested by officers from the Lianhuachi Police Station on March 25, 2021. She was taken to the Lianhu District Detention Center the following day.

According to people who know Ms. Lei, she is almost blind and needs help from her family in her daily life. At the police station, in order to frame her, the officers knew that she could not read the document they presented her with. They asked her family to read the prepared document to her. The officers then pressured her to admit that she was guilty and sign the paperwork.

15. [Heihe City, Heilongjiang Province] Ms. Duan Guirong Harassed

Six or seven people from the Sunwu County Political and Legal Affairs Committee, the 610 Office, and the local community went to Ms. Duan Guirong’s home on April 1, 2021. They ordered Ms. Duan and her husband to sign paperwork and tried to take photos of them together, which Ms. Duan refused. They said that they had to photograph the couple and the couple had to sign paperwork. They threatened that if the couple didn’t sign, they would harass the couple’s child at their child's workplace.

16. [Botou City, Hebei Province] Mr. Wang Shuiyong Passed Away Due to Persecution; Daughter Harassed

Mr. Wang Shuiyong from Lutun Village, Xixindian Township, was harassed and persecuted by members of the township government on September 10, 2020. He passed away on October 2.

When his daughter sought justice from Chen Liqiang, a township government official, for her father’s tragic death, Chen retaliated against her. She was targeted as a key person to be placed under surveillance and intercepted. Chen called the police departments in Beijing where Mr. Wang’s daughter was living. He told them to install surveillance cameras around her home on the grounds that as a family member of Falun Gong practitioners, she made trouble by visiting and appealing to local government agencies in Hebei Province.

In February 2021, Mr. Wang’s son-in-law called and asked Chen to immediately give an explanation about the consequences of taking his father-in-law’s life and retaliating against his wife. Chen said that he would try his best to seek a remedy for Mr. Wang’s death immediately, and after the Lantern Festival (February 26), he would have an answer. Chen also said that he would immediately apply for removal of the surveillance on Mr. Wang’s daughter.

But so far, Mr. Wang’s family has not received Chen’s reply, and Chen has not answered their phone calls.