80-Year-Old Woman Appeals Wrongful Prison Sentence for Her Faith

(Minghui.org) A woman in her 80s is appealing against a 1.5-year prison term for her faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual and meditation discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

Ms. Wang Fengying was arrested at a farmer’s market on October 11, 2020, after being suspected by the police of distributing calendars with information about Falun Gong. The police took her keys and ransacked her home in the afternoon. No list of confiscated items was given. She was then released on bail.

When her one-year bail expired on October 11, 2021, Ms. Wang went to the Jinniu Police Station to demand that they formally terminate the bail terms. The police didn’t process the paperwork until December and put her on residential surveillance immediately afterwards. Yet on the notice given to Ms. Wang, the date when the police lifted her bail condition was written as October 11, 2021.

Meanwhile, the police submitted Ms. Wang’s case to the Xishan District Procuratorate. She was informed by the Xishan District Court on March 7, 2022, that she was indicted and facing trial, despite the fact that she wrote to the prosecutor earlier on, urging him not to indict her.

Ms. Wang also wrote to the presiding judge, Pu Huijun, to drop her case. She was never able to talk to him directly, either when she called or went to the court to look for him. When Ms. Wang submitted her materials seeking justice to a court clerk named Wu Run, he always had a hostile attitude. He also blamed Ms. Wang for promoting Falun Gong and threatened to give her a heavy term.

Ms. Wang was informed by the court on April 7, 2022 that she was scheduled to stand trial five days later. On April 8, a lawyer surnamed Yang called her and said that she was appointed by the judge to represent her.

Ms. Wang didn’t accept Yang’s legal representation immediately, but demanded to meet with her first to make sure that Yang would enter a not guilty plea for her. Yang and a male surnamed Han met with Ms. Wang that afternoon. Both of them refused to tell her their full names.

Ms. Wang said to them that she didn’t violate any law in practicing Falun Gong and she requested a not guilty plea. She gave the materials she prepared earlier about the lack of legal basis of the persecution to the two people and asked to them read it. She requested to meet with them again the day before her hearing, and would then decide whether to have Yang represent her in court. Yang agreed.

From the early morning on April 11, Ms. Wang had been waiting for Yang’s call. Yang didn’t call her until 4: 30 p.m. During the call, Yang didn’t say anything about whether she would enter a not guilty plea for Ms. Wang, but asked her whether she had the proper documentation for a negative COVID-19 test and whether she traveled to any place recently. As Ms. Wang confirmed that she didn’t travel anywhere, Yang said goodbye and that she would see her on the following day in court.

Ms. Wang asked her whether she had read the materials she gave her, Yang responded that it was impossible for her to enter a not guilty plea for her.

Ms. Wang thus rejected Yang’s representation, and Yang became furious. She said that it’s fine for her not to represent Ms. Wang, but she had to fill out proper documents at her law firm. She implied that as the law firm was about to close for the day, there was no time for Ms. Wang to do anything.

After the call, Ms. Wang called the court and complained about Yang. When Yang called her again moments later, Ms. Wang told her about the complaint and Yang’s attitude softened a little.

Yang still went to the court for the scheduled hearing. Ms. Wang made it clear to the judge that she didn’t want Yang’s representation. Yang thus left.

As the hearing proceeded, the prosecutor didn’t show any prosecution evidence against Ms. Wang, nor did any witness appear in court to accept cross-examination. Ms. Wang testified in her own defense and was frequently interrupted by the judge.

On April 24, Ms. Wang received her verdict, which stated that she was sentenced to 1.5 years and fined 5,000 yuan. The document was dated April 13, the day after the hearing.

Appeal

Ms. Wang later filed an appeal with the Kunming City Intermediate Court. She demanded that judge Pu rescind her guilty verdict and return her confiscated items. She also called upon the higher court to bring those who handled her case wrongfully to justice.

In the verdict handed down by the Xishan District Court, the judge mentioned three documents, the cult promotion materials identified by the Kunming City Police Department, a list of cult promotion materials, and authentication letter of Ms. Wang’s Falun Gong items as cult items by the Kunming City Police Department.

Ms. Wang demanded to see these documents, as she had never received a copy herself. She questioned how the police department determined the Falun Gong materials she had were cult items and how they decided that she undermined law enforcement by having those items. She argued that one can’t simply accuse her of undermining law enforcement, the standard pretext against Falun Gong practitioners, just because she had Falun Gong materials.

Ms. Wang added that she used to suffer from a dozen serious ailments, including rheumatoid arthritis, high blood pressure, heart condition and hepatitis A. All of the diseases disappeared after she took up Falun Gong. But when the communist regime began to persecute it in 1999, she stopped practicing out of fear. Shortly after, not only did her previous ailments relapse, but she also had more problems, including hyperthyroidism and depression.

“Falun Gong is the foundation of my life and my health. I’m already 80 years old. Just because I practice Falun Gong and follow its principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance, the Xishan District Court sentenced me to 1.5 years. If my health deteriorates in the prison and my life is in jeopardy, who would be responsible for that? I’m not sure if judge Pu Huijun will.”

“I urge everyone involved in my case to read the Falun Gong materials confiscated from me. You can decide for yourselves whether it benefits you or harms you,” Ms. Wang wrote.

Perpetrators’ contact information:
Yang Yue (杨越), president of Xishan District CourtPu Huijun (普会峻), presiding judge of Xishan District Court: [phone]Li Hui (李辉), head of Xishan District Police Department: [phone]Ye Bingsheng (叶兵胜), officer of Jinniu Police Station: [phone]Zi Liqiong (自丽琼), prosecutor of Xishan District Procuratorate: [phone], [phone]

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

Related report:

Woman in Her 80s Faces Trial for Practicing Falun Gong, Urges Authorities to Dismiss Her Case