Yongxing County, Hunan Province: Four Sentenced to Prison for Practicing Falun Gong

(Minghui.org) Over 20 Falun Gong practitioners in Yongxing County, Hunan Province, were arrested during a police sweep on July 20, 2024, and three of them were sentenced to prison. Another local practitioner, who was arrested months earlier on April 17, 2024, was also confirmed to have been wrongly convicted.

One Sentenced to Two Years

Ms. Zou Ruizhu, 78, was arrested on April 17, 2024, while on her way to her daughter’s home. After a round of interrogation, the police drove Ms. Zou to the Chenzhou Police Department-affiliated detention center. She was found to be unfit for detention after a required physical examination. The detention center refused to admit her. The police finally took her home after 1 a.m. on April 18, 2024. Her daughter was forced to pay a 2,000 yuan bail bond on her behalf.

Ms. Zou was taken to the Yongxing County Procuratorate on May 7, 2024. She refused to sign her case file or have herself videotaped, as no law in China criminalizes Falun Gong. Several officers grabbed her hand to press her fingerprints on the document. They made nine attempts before obtaining a satisfactory fingerprint.

Zhang Yonghua of the Yongxing County Domestic Security Division later submitted Ms. Zou’s case to the Suxian District Procuratorate. Minghui.org recently confirmed that she has been sentenced to two years. But one source said she was allowed to serve time at home, while another source said she has been admitted to the Changsha Prison.

Arrested on the Same Day, Three Sentenced to Prison

Over 20 Falun Gong practitioners and family members were arrested by over 200 police officers on July 20, 2024. Ms. Li Qun’e refused to open the door and the police used a chainsaw to create a big hole in her door, before breaking in. When Mr. Luo Shiyong, the husband of Ms. Li Guifeng, tried to stop the police from raiding their home, the police beat him so hard that he had to be hospitalized. The police also forbade Ms. Li from visiting him at the hospital. All arrested practitioners were forced to have their fingerprints taken, toe prints, and blood samples collected.

Minghui.org recently confirmed that Ms. Li Qun’e was secretly sentenced to four years; she was transferred from the Chenzhou City Detention Center to the dispatch center of Hunan Province Women’s Prison in February 2025.

Mr. Xu Yunyan was sentenced to two years; it’s not clear whether he is still held at the Yongxing County Detention Center or has been admitted to prison.

Ms. Cao Shuiju, who was released after 15 days of detention following her arrest, was sentenced to one and a half years. Her current detention location isn’t clear either.

Related Report:

After 5 Years Behind Bars, 49-Year-Old Hunan Man Faces Another Prison Sentence for Practicing Falun Gong