(Minghui.org) A 66-year-old woman in Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province, was sentenced to 3.5 years on November 11, 2022, for practicing Falun Gong.
Ms. Zhou Meili was arrested on June 11, 2022, after being reported for talking to people about Falun Gong. She has been held in the Jiujiang City Detention Center ever since. Her family only recently learned that the Yongxiu County Court had sentenced her.
Since the Chinese Communist Party started the persecution of Falun Gong in 1999, Ms. Zhou, a retired worker, has been repeatedly arrested. She served three labor camp terms and two prison terms for a total of 13.5 years.
Shortly after Ms. Zhou was released from a 4.5-year prison term on November 8, 2020, the Jiujiang City Social Security Bureau ordered her to pay back the 110,000 yuan in pension funds she received while she was serving time. The agency claimed that a new policy barred all retirees from receiving retirement benefits while serving time, although no Chinese labor law has such a stipulation. Because Ms. Zhou couldn’t afford to repay the funds, the social security bureau suspended her pension.
Wang Yaoping (王耀苹), presiding judge, Yongxiu County CourtChen Yang (陈洋), judge, Yongxiu County CourtHu Qingqing (胡青青), judge, Yongxiu County CourtDeng Peng (邓芃), judge’s assistantXu Shuai (徐帅), court clerk
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