(Minghui.org) A married couple in Fusong County, Jilin Province, was sentenced to prison in December 2022 for their faith in Falun Gong. Mr. Liu Changfu was sentenced to two years and six months. His wife, Ms. Hu Qinglan, received ten months. The authorities cited a secret policy and denied the couple legal representation. The couple’s family wasn’t allowed to attend their trial.

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

Mr. Liu, 59, began to practice Falun Gong in 2010. He credits the practice for curing his hepatitis B, tuberculosis, and extra-gastric tumors. After witnessing his changes, Ms. Hu also took up the practice.

The police broke into the couple’s home at 7 p.m. on May 12, 2022. They confiscated their Falun Gong books and other personal belongings. Ms. Hu, who was at home by herself, was arrested.

Mr. Liu, who was staying at their son’s home in the nearby Songjianghe Town, was arrested the next day when he went out. His family went to the Xintunzi Town Police Station and Fusong Town Police Station, but no one told them where he was being kept. The chief of Xintunzi Town Police Station later revealed that the couple was arrested because surveillance cameras recorded them putting up posters about Falun Gong.

The couple’s family later confirmed that Mr. Liu was held at the Fusong County Detention Center and Ms. Hu at the Baishan City Detention Center.

When the couple’s lawyer went to the Jingyu County Procuratorate in late August 2022 to submit his Power of Attorney and review their case documents, the prosecutor claimed that he had already indicted the couple and moved their cases to the Jingyu County Court.

At the court, the lawyer was told that before the judge could accept his document, he had to register his representation with the Jingyu County Justice Bureau. The lawyer then went to the justice bureau, only to be told that he had to prepare seven different documents.

After he finished them, the justice bureau further directed him to the Baishan City Bar Association, which had 19 things for the lawyer to check off, including things he couldn’t do before reviewing the case document. The lawyer demanded to see the legal basis for such requirements, but a justice bureau staff member responded that it was a secret document, which can’t be shown to the lawyer.

In late September, the lawyer filed complaints against the justice bureau with the Supreme People’s Court, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate, the National Bar Association, the Jilin Provincial Bar Association, the Ministry of Justice, the State Appeals Office, the Central Political and Legal Affairs Committee, and the Jilin Provincial Political and Legal Affairs Committee. Most of the agencies responded between October and November, urging the lawyer to contact the authorities in Baishan City himself.

The lawyer received a document from the Baishan City Justice Bureau in late November, which stated that the Baishan City Bar Association’s requirements for him to register the case are within the legal scope of the notice issued by the Baishan City Political and Legal Affairs Committee.

With no other way to seek justice, the lawyer had to drop the couple’s cases. The Jingyu County Court held a virtual trial of the couple and sentenced them on December 20.