Two Henan Women File Motion to Reconsider Their Wrongful Sentences for Practicing Falun Gong

(Minghui.org) After two Xinyang City, Henan Province residents had their appeals against the wrongful sentences for practicing Falun Gong rejected, they have filed motions to reconsider their cases with the same intermediate court. They maintained that they didn’t violate any law in practicing their faith and that it was the police, the procuratorate and the court who broke the law in persecuting her.

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

Ms. Bai Yuzhen, 80, and Ms. Jin Yuling, a 61-year-old former school accountant, were arrested by plainclothes officers at Ms. Bai’s home on June 22, 2021. They were held at the Xinyang City No. 1 Detention Center. The Huangchuan County Court held a hearing of their cases on December 14, 2021. Ms. Bai was sentenced to 3 years and Ms. Jin to 3.5 years. 

Both practitioners appealed with the Xinyang City Intermediate Court. The judge ruled to uphold their original verdicts on June 15, 2022. They filed motions to reconsider their cases shortly after. The court accepted their cases in August but has yet to make a decision about it.

Ms. Jin said that due to the mental and physical pressure she endured in custody, she has been struggling with a medical condition in the past few months. Before the intermediate court held the hearing of her appeal case, she had a lump growing in her breast. She is now emaciated and her health continued to decline.

She argued in her motion that no law has ever criminalized Falun Gong in China and that the prosecutor failed to demonstrate how she had “undermined law enforcement with a cult organization,” the standard pretext used to frame Falun Gong practitioners in China. She demanded the appeals court to uphold justice and acquit her. 

Ms. Bai, who also remains in custody despite her advanced age, has lost a significant amount of weight as well. She also has severe swelling in her calves. With only a few teeth left, she could only eat soft or liquid food, but the detention center refused to accommodate her special dietary needs. Her children are very worried about her health and long for her return.

Perpetrators’ contact information:

Liu Wanxi (刘万喜), president of Xinyang City Intermediate Court: [phone]Wang Junjie (王俊杰), head of Shihe District Domestic Security Office: [phone]Huang Jiaxin (黄家新), secretary of Shihe District Political and Legal Affairs Committee: [phone]

(More perpetrators’ contact information is available in the original Chinese article.)

Related reports:

Two Women, Aged 80 and 61, Lose Their Appeals against Wrongful Terms for Practicing Falun Gong

Two Women’s Appeal Against Wrongful Terms for Practicing Falun Gong Heard by Higher Court

Two Henan Women, 60 and 80, Sentenced to Prison for Practicing Falun Gong