(Minghui.org) Qian Kexiao, a former secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in Yongning County, Ningxia Province, appeared at a virtual court hearing on July 29, 2022. He was charged with taking bribes. Several weeks later, Wuzhong Court sentenced him to 11 years and 6 months in prison and fined him one million yuan.

Born in March 1964, Qian was one of the key officials responsible for the suppression against Falun Gong in the region. After being appointed as deputy head of Yongning County in September 2007, he became a standing member of the county Party committee in December 2008. Between January 2011 and September 2012, Qian was a deputy head and then deputy Party secretary of the Xingqing District in Yinchuan City, which has jurisdiction over Yongning County.

After returning to Yongning County in September 2012, Qian was first appointed the interim county head and then county head. He became Yongning Party secretary in December 2013. He was later promoted to be a standing member of the Yinchuan City Party committee in November 2016. After being disciplined in November 2017, he was removed from office in August 2018.

During Qian’s tenure in Yongning County, local Falun Gong practitioners faced severe persecution for upholding their faith.

Mr. Zhao Yuhu, Ms. Zhao Sumei, Ms. Jiang Hongying, and Ms. Wang Xiangyu were all arrested by Shengli Town police in December 2014. Mr. Zhang was held at the Yongning Detention Center while others were sent to Yinchuan Detention Center. Yongning County Procuratorate approved their criminal detention on January 23, 2015 and a trial was held for these four practitioners on July 2, 2015. All four practitioners were sentenced and fined by the Yongning County Court on April 13, 2016.

After banners bearing messages about Falun Gong appeared in public places in early June 2016, police from Yongning County and Yinchuan City arrested dozens of local practitioners and raided their homes in the following two months. These practitioners were tortured in detention, had their blood drawn against their will, and were forced to sign and fingerprint statements defaming Falun Gong. At least three of the practitioners were sentenced to prison, including Mr. Jiang Tao, Ms. Su Qingling, and Ms. Cao Guilan.

While Qian was convicted for taking bribes, Falun Gong practitioners believe that his downfall was a consequence of his persecuting Falun Gong. There is a saying that good and evil will be rewarded accordingly. We hope other officials will learn the lesson of Qian and stop persecuting innocent Falun Gong practitioners. When practitioners are persecuted for being good citizens who follow the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, everyone will suffer.