(Minghui.org) Today's news from China includes incidents of persecution that took place in 8 cities or counties in 5 provinces, where at least 15 practitioners were recently persecuted for their belief.

1. [Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province] Ms. Niu Xiaona’s Appeal Denied
2. [Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province] Mr. Guo Yuanrong Is Ill and Faces Second Trial
3. [Dongying City, Shandong Province] Three Practitioners Face Trial
4. [Datong City, Shanxi Province] Ms. Liu Suying Detained, Her Mother Passes Away
5. [Beijing] Mr. Pang You Indicted
6. [Chongqing] Three Practitioners Arrested, One of Them Detained
7. [Baoding City, Hebei Province] Li Ya and Deng Limin Face Indictment
8. [Lanzhou City, Gansu Province] Mr. Zhou Wei Faces Indictment

1. [Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province] Ms. Niu Xiaona’s Appeal Denied

Ms. Niu Xiaona, who is disabled, was arrested by railroad police on April 19, 2021. At the end of September 2022 the Harbin Railroad Transportation Court sentenced her to 15 years in prison and deprived her of her political rights for four years, and fined her 1,000 yuan. She appealed. The Railroad Transportation Intermediate Court affirmed the lower court decision in January 2023.

2. [Zhangjiakou City, Hebei Province] Mr. Guo Yuanrong Is Ill and Faces Second Trial

Mr. Guo Yuanrong’s family finally got some news about him after they asked about for him for some time. He was admitted to the cardiac ward in the Datong City No. 5 People’s Hospital before COVID lock-down was lifted in early December 2022. But the family was not allowed to visit him. They learned he was tried in court once but plead not guilty.

His child went to the Kouquan Procuratorate and the Kouquan Court in the Yungang District, Datong City. Instead of being told of Mr. Guo’s health condition, the child was rebuked by the prosecutor. A second trial may be scheduled soon.

3. [Dongying City, Shandong Province] Three Practitioners Face Trial

Mr. Zhou Deyong’s trial is rescheduled for January 15, 2023 at 9:00 a.m. The Dongying District Court originally scheduled it for January 14.

Ms. Chen Xiaohong’s and Ms. Guo Hongyan’s trials are scheduled for January 15, 2023 at 2:00 p.m. by the Dongying District Court. The presiding judge is Zhang Shujuan.

4. [Datong City, Shanxi Province] Ms. Liu Suying Detained, Her Mother Died

Ms. Liu Suying was held in the Datong City No. 1 Detention Center when her mother died on December 29, 2022. She was her mother’s caregiver. Her mother had trouble seeing and difficulty walking. After she was detained, her mother asked for her daily.

5. [Beijing] Mr. Pang You Indicted

The case against Mr. Pang You was submitted to the Changping Court. He may still be held in the Police Hospital.

6. [Chongqing] Three Practitioners Arrested, One of Them Detained

Ms. Li Benyuan, 75, Ms. Yang He’an, 68, and Ms. Liao Baixiu, 77, were stalked by plainclothes officers on December 7, 2022, for talking to people about the persecution of Falun Gong. Five or six plainclothes officers searched their homes at 10:00 a.m., 2:00 p.m., and 4:00 p.m., respectively. They seized a dozen or more Falun Gong books, U-drives, and 3,000 yuan in paper currency with Falun Gong messages printed on them. 

The three practitioners were taken to the Hanfengzhen No. 2 Police Station. They were interrogated separately. The officers filled out police records, photographed them, and took their fingerprints. Ms. Li was handcuffed and shackled, and sat on an iron chair during the interrogation. The officers had their families pick them up the next morning. 

They were taken to the Kaizhou Criminal Brigade on the morning of December 9. Their families were told to take them home that night. Ms. Yang was given 12 days detention. It was executed at home by her husband due to the pandemic.

7. [Baoding City, Hebei Province] Li Ya and Deng Limin Face Indictment

Li Ya and Deng Limin (gender unknown) received calls from the Anguo City Procuratorate. They were ordered to report to the procuratorate and sign confession statements, and were told that their cases would be submitted to the Gaoyang Procuratorate. Neither of them complied.

They were followed in April 2022 after they distributed Falun Gong flyers. They were placed under house arrest because of the pandemic.

8. [Lanzhou City, Gansu Province] Mr. Zhou Wei Faces Indictment

Mr. Zhou Wei’s wife received a call from the Xizhan Police Station on January 9, 2023. She was informed that police would take Mr. Zhou to the procuratorate for paperwork. A police car soon showed up in front of their building. Officers had Mr. Zhou get into the car.

The car went to the Chengguan District Procuratorate. A female prosecutor held a file. The first page was the list of items seized from his home. She told him to sign it. He refused. The officers had Mr. Zhou stand aside and told him to wait for Mr. Su Anzhou to come, and then sign it together. But Mr. Su did not come. He was let go.

The officers and prosecutors are trying to combine the cases against Mr. Zhou, Mr. Su, and Li Wenming together, and hold a court trial in six months.