(Minghui.org) A resident in Jiamusi City, Heilongjiang Province was secretly sentenced to prison for practicing Falun Gong, a mind-body discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

Mr. Zhang Guohai, 50, was arrested at home by Zhao Bo and a few officers from Zhongshan Police Station on July 27, 2019. Zhao ransacked his home and arrested his neighbor, 72-year-old Ms. Zhang Shulan, who also practices Falun Gong. 

Both Mr. Zhang and Ms. Zhang were taken to the Qianjin District Domestic Security Office and interrogated. In the evening, they were transferred to the Jiamusi City Detention Center. The police quickly submitted their cases to the Xiangyang District Procuratorate, which then indicted them and forwarded their cases to the Xiangyang District Court.

Since Mr. Zhang’s arrest, the authorities have been denying his family visitation. Not until recently did the family learn that Mr. Zhang has been sentenced to four years by the Xiangyang District Court and is scheduled to be released on July 27, 2023. 

Mr. Zhang’s family also confirmed that he was taken to the training ward at Shuangyashan Prison on May 10, 2021 and transferred to the Tailai Prison on June 3. He is now held at the 16th ward of Tailai Prison and still denied family visitation.

As for Ms. Zhang, she was tried by the Xiangyang District Court at the detention center on December 6, 2019 and sentenced to one year with one year probation. With the probation, she was exempted from serving time and was released on December 30. 

Mr. Zhang, a former employee of the Harbin Railroad Bureau, took up Falun Gong in 1996. He credits the practice for curing his many ailments. Freed from suffering physical discomfort and living by Falun Gong’s principles Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance, he improved his temper and became more considerate. 

For upholding his belief in Falun Gong in the face of the persecution, Mr. Zhang has been arrested seven times. He was held in a brainwashing center once and in labor camps twice. While in detention, he was shocked with electric batons, beaten and forced to sit on a small stool without moving for long hours. His workplace fired him and the police extorted a large fine from his family. Unable to bear the persecution, his wife divorced him. Since 2008, he was forced into displacement to avoid the persecution and was put on the police’s wanted list in 2009.

Perpetrators’ contact information:
Cang Quanwei (苍权威), guard of 16th ward at the Tailai Prison: +86-18004625155
Huang Binbin (黄彬宾), guard of 16th ward at the Tailai Prison: +86-18004625337Zhang Xiaoyan (张晓燕), secretary of Jiamusi City Political and Legal Affairs Committee: +86-454-6770677, +86-17645426677Li Xiaolong (李晓龙), head of Jiamusi City Police Department: +86-454-8511612, +86-17790680001Zhao Bo (赵博), officer of Zhongshan Police Station: +86-13846166766Li Lifeng (李利锋), prosecutor of Xiangyang District Procuratorate: +86-13846169281, +86-18697098055, +86-1384616928133Song Tao (宋涛), judge of Xiangyang District Court: +86-454-8709816, +86-18903687999, +86-13512645666 

(More perpetrators’ contact information is available in the original Chinese article.)

Related report:

Jiamusi Falun Gong Practitioner Zhang Guohai Subjected to Repeated Persecution

Chinese version available

Category: Accounts of Persecution