(Minghui.org) An 81-year-old woman in Maoming City, Guangdong Province was put under house arrest by a local court on November 19, 2021. Ms. Li Shunhua is also facing trial for her faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Ms. Li was arrested at home on October 23, 2020. A dozen officers from the Zhanqian Police Station confiscated her over 50 Falun Gong books, 240 Falun Gong magazines, two music players that she used to do the Falun Gong exercises, a cellphone, and some other informational materials. The police interrogated her and ordered her to renounce Falun Gong at the police station. She refused to comply.
During a physical examination the next day, Ms. Li was found to have high blood pressure and a severe heart condition. The doctor said to the police that her life could be in danger at any time.
Despite her condition, the police took her to the Maoming City No.1 Detention Center on the same day. The guards ordered an inmate to closely monitor her and report to them if she fell sick.
At 4 p.m. on October 26, the inmate noticed that Ms. Li’s face was flushed. She reported it to a guard and Ms. Li was released on bail at 11 p.m.
Ms. Li had severe stomach pain upon returning home. She had loose bowels for 11 days and her body weight dropped over 20 lbs.
Five staff members from the local residential committee knocked on Ms. Li’s door at noon on May 28, 2021. Ms. Li refused to open the door for them. As they were talking, her son, who was having a nap, woke up. He urged the staff members to stop harassing his mother and to leave immediately. They became scared and left.
The police submitted Ms. Li’s case to the Maonan District Procuratorate on October 9, 2021. The prosecutor indicted her on October 22, on charges of “undermining law enforcement with a cult organization,” the standard pretext used to criminalize Falun Gong practitioners in China.
The indictment stated that since Ms. Li took up Falun Gong, she has been actively promoting the practice to others, especially to Guo Weiqing and Zheng Caiqin between 2015 and 2020.
Both Guo and Zheng were members of the Gaoliangnan Residential Committee. They harassed Ms. Li multiple times between 2015 and 2020, with the latest harassment in July 2020, and ordered her to renounce Falun Gong. As Ms. Li remained firm in her faith, they reported her to the police, which resulted in her arrest and indictment.
On the early morning of October 28, the prosecutor ordered Ms. Li’s son to bring her to the Maonan District Court at 8: 30 a.m. for a subpoena. Her son insisted that she didn’t violate any law and refused to take her there.
Deng Haichao of the Maonan District Domestic Security Office called Ms. Li on October 29 and asked whether she was planning to hire a lawyer. Deng offered to find a lawyer to represent her for free. Ms. Li said she would hire a lawyer on her own, knowing that the court-appointed lawyer would enter a guilty plea for her.
The police and court staff members called Ms. Li’s son and daughter again in early November and threatened them that they weren’t allowed to hire a lawyer for her or help her to contact other local Falun Gong practitioners.
The judge put Ms. Li on house arrest on November 19. She is now awaiting trial at home.
Past Persecution
Ms. Li took up Falun Gong in September 1995 and she credits the practice for curing her many ailments, including rheumatoid arthritis, tuberculosis, nephritis, sciatic nerve pain, and frozen shoulder.
Ms. Li went to Beijing to appeal for the right to practice Falun Gong in late 2000. She was arrested at the train station and body searched. The two Falun Gong books and 700 yuan in cash she had were confiscated.
The police held her at the Guandu Police Station for three days before transferring her to the Maoming City No.2 Detention Center for six months. She was forced to attend a one-month brainwashing session and extorted 1,000 yuan before being released.
Ms. Li was arrested again at home on July 30, 2008, when she and her grandson were by themselves. After taking her to the Maoming City Brainwashing Center, the police returned on August 5 to search her place. They pried open two of her front doors to break in and confiscated her Falun Gong book, photo of Falun Gong’s founder, a TV, a VCD player and a disk burner. She was released 33 days later.
The constant harassment of Ms. Li took a toll on her husband’s health. After living in fear and distress for years, he developed a critical disease and passed away.
Related reports:
81-year-old Woman Faces Trial for Upholding Her Faith
Two Senior Women Arrested as Police Break into their Homes in Maoming City, Guandong Province
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