(Minghui.org) More than three hundred police officers in Zunhua City, Hebei Province were mobilized to round up local Falun Gong practitioners on July 6, 2019.
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
A police chief revealed that they had more than thirty practitioners on their list to be targeted, and that they had monitored the practitioners’ cellphones for two months before making the move.
Eighteen practitioners and three of their family members who do not practice Falun Gong, are confirmed to have been arrested on July 6. The arrests took place simultaneously at around 3:00 a.m. that day.
Seven of the arrested practitioners and all three family members have since been released. The remaining eleven practitioners have been reported to have court dates set for December 17, 19, and 23, 2019, and January 13, 2020.
It is unclear whether the 11 practitioners are being tried jointly or separately. Another local practitioner, Mr. Zhang Yuming, who was arrested on July 2, 2019, was said to have several hearings scheduled on the same dates as some of the 11 practitioners. Details of the scheduled hearings remain to be investigated.
Names of the 18 Practitioners
Three married couples are among the 18 practitioners, including Mr. Ma Kuo, 67, and his wife, Ms. Wang Ruiling, 67; Mr. Wang Kun, 43, and his wife, Ms. Ji Huijun; Ms. Sheng Jinling, and her husband, Mr. Cai Zhihai.
The other 12 practitioners included Ms. Lin Xiuzhen, 63; Ms. Zhang Qin, in her 70s; Ms. Gao Jingru, in her 60s; Mr. Wang Jian, in his 70s; Ms. Guo Shuhuan; Ms. Lu Cuihua and Ms. Tian Shuxue, around 80; Ms. Gao Hongxia; Ms. Guo Xudong; Ms. Fu Yuhe; Mr. Chang Dengping; and Ms. Wang Suling.
Names of the Three Family Members Who Do Not Practice Falun Gong
Ms. Gao Hongxia’s husband, Mr. Sui Jinming, escaped the arrest and has been forced to live away from home to avoid the persecution. Their son, Mr. Sui Xin, was held in police custody for one day.
Ms. Guo Xudong’s husband was also arrested along with her, and released later that day. He was beaten by the police and had bruises on his body.
Mr. Zhang Qin’s daughter videotaped the police and their IDs while they ransacked their home. The police snatched her phone and deleted the videos. She was brought to the police station and interrogated before being released.
Current Status of the 18 Arrested Practitioners
The police ransacked all 18 practitioners’ homes and confiscated their computers, printers, Falun Gong books, and other personal belongings. The police took an unknown amount of cash from Mr. Ma Kuo and his wife, Ms. Wang Ruiling. The couple's car, as well as that of Mr. Wang Kun, was also seized.
Ms. Tian Shuxue was released on bail after being extorted of 50,000 yuan. Six other practitioners, including Ms. Gao Hongxia, Ms. Guo Xudong, Ms. Fu Yuhe, Mr. Chang Dengping, Ms. Ji Huijun, and Ms. Wang Suling, also returned home shortly after the arrests. It's unclear whether they were released on bail or unconditionally.
The remaining eleven practitioners were sent to two detention centers, with males held at Zunhua City Detention Center and females at Tangshan City Detention Center.
Past Persecution
Most of the 11 practitioners on trial have been repeatedly persecuted for their faith during the past 20 years.
Mr. Wang Kun, a welder, has three prior arrests for his faith. He was first arrested around 2002 for distributing Falun Gong informational materials, and given one year at Hehuakeng Forced Labor Camp. His ex-wife divorced him due to the pressure from the persecution.
Mr. Wang was arrested again around September 2009 and detained for three months. He was ordered to pay 3,500 yuan for his meals. His second wife, Ms. Ji Huijun, was also detained for three days.
Mr. Wang was later arrested again after being reported for talking to people about Falun Gong. He was extorted of 13,500 yuan.
Ms. Sheng Jinling, a retired doctor, was arrested four times prior to her latest arrest, in June 2007, November 2010, August 2012, and May 2015. Her home was ransacked during her 2012 arrest and her Falun Gong related materials confiscated.
Mr. Wang Jian was previously arrested six times, and held at Kaiping Forced Labor Camp in 2010. He suffered financial losses totaling more than 20,000 yuan.
Ms. Wang Ruiling was arrested on May 10, 2011 and had her home ransacked.
Ms. Gao Jingru, who works in a local cafeteria, was arrested in 2010 and detained at Zunhua Detention Center after being reported by her own daughter-in-law, who was influenced by the communist regime’s demonizing propaganda against Falun Gong.
Ms. Lin Xiuzhen, who credits Falun Gong for giving her hope to live on after her ten-year-old son died in a car accident in 1998, was arrested in 1999 for appealing for Falun Gong in Beijing. She was detained for 18 days and extorted of 3,000 yuan.
Ms. Lin was arrested and detained again on August 14, 2016 after being reported for putting up information about Falun Gong. She was extorted of 1,000 yuan by Wang Aiqing, the head of the detention center.
Related Report in Chinese:河北省遵化市国保警察近期恶行
