(Minghui.org) A woman serving time for practicing Falun Gong was forced to sit on a 10-cm-tall stool for up to 18 hours every day for more than two years.

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is an ancient spiritual and meditation discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party since 1999.

Ms. Li Guiying, then 49, was arrested on October 25, 2016 together with two other practitioners, Ms. Li Guihua (no relation to Ms. Li Guiying), then 68; and Ms. Ma Xiurong, then 70. The police said they targeted them in order to meet a quota of arrested practitioners.

Although the police promised to release the practitioners after two weeks, the Luyuan District Court sentenced Ms. Li Guihua, Ms. Li Guiying and Ms. Ma to five, four and two years, respectively, on July 13, 2017.

Since she was taken to Jilin Province Women’s Prison in July 2017, Ms. Li Guiying was forced to sit on a small stool until September 2019 because she refused to renounce her faith.

The guards ordered her to keep her legs bent and put her hands on her lap. At the same time, she was forced to watch videos slandering Falun Gong. Several inmates monitored her, beating and verbally abusing her at will. 

After more than two years of the torture, Ms. Li suffered disability in one leg and couldn’t walk on her own. When she refused to sit on the small stool anymore, the guards held her in solitary confinement for a month in September 2019. She had an abnormally rapid heartbeat after returning to the regular cell and was hospitalized in November.

It’s not clear whether she has been discharged from the hospital at the time of writing.

Related reports:

Changchun Police Arrest Falun Gong Practitioners to Fill Quota

Forms of Torture Used in Jilin Prison on Falun Gong Practitioners Who Refuse to Renounce Their Faith

Crimes Committed Against Falun Gong Practitioners by Jilin Province Women's Prison