(Minghui.org) A woman in her 70s has had her pension suspended since 2020 for practicing Falun Gong. She filed a lawsuit against the local social security bureau. She won but the agency still refused to reinstate her pension.
The ordeal of Ms. Gang Fengqing, a retired factory worker in Qiqihar City, Heilongjiang Province, stemmed from her three-year prison sentence in 2013. She was reduced to just skin and bones with gray hair by the time she was released in 2016.
In 2020, the Nianzishan District Social Security Bureau suspended Ms. Gang’s pension, citing a notice barring retirees who served time in prison from receiving retirement benefits. However, no Chinese labor law has such a stipulation.
Ms. Gang filed a lawsuit with the local court, which recently ruled that the Nianzishan District Social Security Bureau must pay Ms. Gang the basic pension.
However, the social security bureau still refuses to make any payments. Its director Li Cheng even said to Ms. Gang, “I’m the gatekeeper of the Chinese Communist Party’s money. I just won’t give you the pension payments.”
Heilongjiang Woman Recounts Repeated Arrests and Abuse for Practicing Falun Gong