Qingzhou City, Shandong Province: Four Falun Gong Practitioners Arrested in Four Months

(Minghui.org) Four Falun Gong practitioners in Qingzhou City, Shandong Province, including a 19-year-old college student and three others in their 60s, were arrested between March and June 2021.

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

Ms. Wang Guifeng was arrested first, at a farmers’ market on March 5, 2021. Details of her arrest and current situation aren’t clear.

Ms. Li Hui, a 19-year-old freshman at Weifang Nursing School, chose not to get the coronavirus vaccine. In retaliation, her school reported her to the police, knowing she was a Falun Gong practitioner. On April 22, 2021, a teacher and several police officers broke into her dorm, recorded, and searched it. Her five Falun Gong books, over 200 cards with information on how to overcome the internet censorship in China, 16 information cards about Falun Gong, and a flash drive were confiscated.

Ms. Li is now in the Weifang Detention Center. Her family went to the Domestic Security Office several times to seek her release. The police turned them away with the excuse that she refused to renounce Falun Gong. Meanwhile, the police ordered a family member of hers, who also practices Falun Gong, to write a statement to renounce it and write a letter to Ms. Li to persuade her to give up her faith. When the family member refused to comply, the police also ransacked their home.

Ms. Li’s father passed away just a few months ago. Her mother was dealt another heavy blow by her arrest and is unable to eat or sleep well. When the police tried to ransack her home, she was so frightened that she fainted. Fearing that she might die, the police retreated.

It has been confirmed that the police have submitted Ms. Li’s case to the procuratorate and she is being denied family visits. A hearing scheduled for August 12 remains to be investigated to see if it actually took place.

The third practitioner, Ms. Yan Xiling, was arrested on June 19, after being followed by the police. Her computer and other personal items were confiscated.

Ten days later, Ms. Li Weidong was arrested at home. When Ms. Li refused to open the door for the police, they first tried to deceive her younger daughter into returning home to open the door for them. When she said she didn’t have a key, the police hired a locksmith. While the locksmith was working on the lock, the police smashed the door on the side. Ms. Li was eventually forced to open the door.

After the officers barged in, they confiscated her two computers, one printer, three boxes of copy paper, 40 Falun Gong books, one photo of Falun Gong’s founder, some cash, and other Falun Gong-related materials. Ms. Li was first held at the Qingzhou Detention Center and then taken to the Weifang City Detention Center.

Contact information:
Qingzhou City Police Department: [phone]Qingzhou City Domestic Security Office: [phone], [phone]Qingzhou City Procuratorate: [phone], [phone]Qingzhou City Court: [phone]Qingzhou City Justice Bureau: [phone]