Husband and Wife In and Out of Detention One after Another for Upholding Their Shared Faith in Falun Gong

(Minghui.org) Only one and half months after Mr. Li Qinjun returned home from serving 4.5 years for practicing Falun Gong, his wife, Ms. Zhang Xiaorong, was arrested and recently sentenced to 3 years for her faith in Falun Gong.

Ms. Zhang and Mr. Li, residents of Xingyang City, Henan Province, took up Falun Gong, an ancient spiritual discipline, in 1997. After the Chinese communist regime ordered the persecution in July 1999, the couple have been repeatedly arrested and incarcerated. Their family-run bookstore was forced to shut down, and their son and daughter grew up in constant fear of losing their parents at any time.

Ms. Zhang was first arrested when she went to Beijing in May 2000 to appeal for Falun Gong. Her husband and their five-year-old son Li Longkun were also arrested shortly after she was taken back to Xingyang. The father and son were beaten in a detention facility and released the next morning.

Mr. Li was arrested again on July 5, 2000. Both he and Ms. Zhang were taken to a detention facility and held there for eight months. He was beaten by a guard and suffered injuries to his clavicle. As the couple were both detained, their son had to stay with their relatives.

The couple was transferred to a brainwashing center on February 16, 2001 and held there for another four months before being released on June 15, 2001.

Ms. Zhang, who gave birth to a baby girl in 2002, was arrested again in 2003 and given an unknown term at Shibalihe Forced Labor Camp. She was subjected to constant torture, including electric shocks, being tied up in excruciating positions and beatings. She was in a delirious state when she was released. She often left home and wandered on the street.

When Mr. Li was arrested on June 11, 2007, their 11-year-old son had to take care of his 5-year-old sister, Li Jingyu, as their mother was too mentally unstable to take care of them. Mr. Li was later sentenced to 3.5 years and released on December 10, 2010.

As Ms. Zhang gradually recovered, she was dealt a heavy blow when Mr. Li was arrested again on May 12, 2017. The police interrogated him and beat him, causing his ear to bleed. The Xingyang City Court sentenced him to four years in Xinmi Prison.

While Mr. Li was still serving time, Ms. Zhang was arrested on May 13, 2018 by Ma Jichang, the head of Xingyang City Domestic Security Office. Because she was found to have tuberculosis, the Zhengzhou City No. 3 Detention Center refused to accept her, but later relented after the police bribed them. She was released on November 12, 2020, after 1.5 years of detention. 

After Mr. Li was released on November 12, 2021, he still faced constant harassment by the local police and residential committee staff members. Sometimes the officers stayed outside of his home both day and night to monitor the family.

The police arrested Ms. Zhang again on December 31, 2021 and also held her at the Zhengzhou City No. 3 Detention Center. Her family recently confirmed that she has been sentenced to three years.

Perpetrators’ contact information:

Liu Yanjie (刘彦杰), secretary of Xingyang City Political and Legal Affairs Committee: [phone]Ma Lin(马琳), officer of Xingyang City Police Department: [phone]Ma Jichang (马继昌), head of Xingyang City Domestic Security Office: [phone], [phone]Zhao Weidong (赵卫东), officer of Jingcheng Police Station: [phone]

Related report:

Wife Arrested Again While Husband Is Still Serving Time for Their Shared Faith in Falun Gong