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Widowed 79-year-old Woman Faces Financial Devastation After Serving Time for Her Faith

Feb. 21, 2021 |   By a Minghui correspondent in Jiangxi Province, China

(Minghui.org) When Ms. Wang Fengying, a 79-year-old resident of Nanchang City, Jiangxi Province, went to withdraw some cash on February 1, 2021, she was surprised to discover 5,000 yuan missing from her account.

A bank employee told her that the Donghu District Court withdrew the money in August 2020. But Ms. Wang had not received any explanation or notice from the court about why it was taking her money without her knowledge.

Ms. Wang Fengying

Ms. Wang was arrested in June 2017 for posting banners about Falun Gong, a mind-body practice that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999. She was sentenced to a three-year prison term on November 13, 2017 by the Donghu District Court.

She was subjected to various forms of torture while being held at the Jiangxi Women’s Prison, including being dragged on the ground, being pushed around, and being forced to stand for long periods of time. She was once hit on the head so hard that her head became severely swollen. Another time, she was forced to wear a straitjacket and suspended in the air with her four limbs tied to the bed posts (see illustration below). She was also subjected to slave labor and sleep deprivation. The guards also verbally abused and force-fed her unknown drugs.

Torture illustration: Tied up and suspended in the air

Ms. Wang’s arrest and sentence caused much grief to her husband, Mr. Tang Weiji. The otherwise healthy 86-year-old experienced loss of appetite and insomnia. The mental pressure, fear, and worries took a toll on Mr. Tang’s health. He passed away in agony in June 2019, a year before Ms. Wang’s release.

After Ms. Wang returned home in June 2020, the authorities started to withhold 1,800 yuan from her 2,400 yuan pension each month, to pay back the more than 70,000 yuan she had received while incarcerated.

The authorities claimed that she wasn’t entitled to receive the pension during her imprisonment, even though neither the Labor Law nor Social Insurance Law of China stipulates that pensions should be suspended while serving a sentence.

With the court arbitrarily taking money from her, Ms. Wang is now facing a more destitute financial situation living on her own.

Related reports:

78-Year-Old Retiree’s Pension Garnished After Three-year Imprisonment

Jiangxi Woman, 76, Sentenced to Three Years for Her Belief

Woman, 75, Defends Herself in Court

Torture Methods Adopted in Jiangxi Prisons Aim to Force Falun Gong Practitioners into Giving Up Their Faith