Three Chongqing Residents Sentenced to Prison for Practicing Falun Gong

(Minghui.org) Three Chongqing residents were recently sentenced to prison for their faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

Both Ms. Yan Huiyu and Ms. Wang Jimei were sentenced to two years and have been taken to the Chongqing Women’s Prison. Ms. Jiang Xinmei’s prison term and current situation wasn’t clear.

All three practitioners were indicted by the Jiangbei District Procuratorate and sentenced by the Jiangbei District Court, both of which were designated to handle Falun Gong cases in the Chongqing region to expedite the process.

Ms. Yan Huiyu

Ms. Yan Huiyu was first arrested at home on May 12, 2020 after she was deceived by the police into opening the door. The officers confiscated her 40 Falun Gong books, printer and 6,300 yuan in cash, as well as 300 blank DVDs, 200 DVD covers, 16 packs of copy paper, which she used to produce Falun Gong informational materials at home. She was interrogated at the police station until late afternoon and then released on bail.

The community committee staff members harassed Ms. Yan on October 25, 2020 and ordered her to sign statements to renounce Falun Gong. When she refused, they threatened to call the police to arrest her and eventually forced her husband to sign the statement on her behalf.

Ms. Yan was arrested on June 9, 2021, on her way back from grocery shopping. After passing the physical examination, she was taken to the Yubei District Detention Center. Her family wasn’t allowed to visit her or send clothes and other daily necessities to her.

Past Persecution

Since the onset of the persecution, Ms. Yan has been repeatedly harassed for her faith.

Both she and her husband were arrested in October 2015 for filing a criminal complaint against Jiang Zemin, the former head of the communist regime who ordered the persecution. Four plainclothes officers held her husband’s arms and dragged him downstairs. Then they handcuffed him. The handcuffs were so tight that the flesh on his wrists was cut and bleeding.

Ms. Yan was held at a brainwashing center for 24 days and her husband 18 days. During the time, the police searched her home for a few days in a row, confiscating her 20 Falun Gong books, 2 DVD burners, 6 printers, 26 packs of copy paper and hundreds of blank DVDs.

The police ransacked Ms. Yan’s home again on April 19, 2017. They also took pictures while searching around. Her two Falun Gong books and 65 yuan in cash were taken away. Ms. Yan ran after the police when they left and eventually got the money back.

Ms. Wang Jimei

Ms. Wang Jimei was surrounded by a group of officers as soon as she returned home on June 23, 2021 from grocery shopping. They raided her home without showing a search warrant. Upon finding 20 copies of Falun Gong materials in her purse, one police officer took out a blank search warrant and began to fill it out. Another officer put on her police uniform, while others remained in plainclothes. No confiscation list was ever given to her family. She was held at Yubei District Detention Center before being taken to the prison.

Ms. Jiang Xinmei

Ms. Jiang Xinmei was stopped by a person while walking on the street on June 8, 2021. After confirming her identity, more officers showed up. They searched her bag, videotaped it and pushed her into a private car.

Ms. Jiang was taken to the Yubeilianglu Police Station. The police photographed and videotaped her, recorded her voice and collected a blood sample. She was given six months of residential surveillance, without any formal documents.