77-year-old Woman Tried for Her Faith, Defender Barred from Entering Courtroom

(Minghui.org) A 77-year-old Hefei City, Anhui Province resident stood trial on April 12, 2023 for her faith in Falun Gong, a mind-body practice that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

Prior to Ms. Cheng Zhiqun’s hearing by the Shushan District Court, the judge made several attempts to force her to dismiss her non-lawyer defender Mr. Cheng Hai (no relation) [in China, defendants are allowed to entrust family or friends who cannot practice law to defend their innocence]. Mr. Cheng is a prominent human rights lawyer in Beijing who couldn’t get his law license renewed due to his representation of other Falun Gong practitioners and human rights lawyers. 

When Ms. Cheng refused to comply, the judge barred Mr. Cheng from entering the courtroom on the day of the hearing.

Ms. Cheng testified in her own defense. She argued that China’s General Administration of Press and Publication has long lifted the ban of Falun Gong books in 2011. So it was legitimate for her to have Falun Gong literature at home and distribute it. 

Prior to her latest ordeal, Ms. Cheng has been arrested three times for distributing informational materials about Falun Gong. Details about her latest arrest aren’t clear.

Since 2018, the authorities in Hefei City appointed the Shushan District Procuratorate and Shushan District Court to specifically handle Falun Gong cases in the region. At least 45 practitioners have been sentenced since then, with prison terms ranging from six months to five and a half years. The youngest practitioners sentenced were in their 20s and the oldest were in their 80s. A few were given probation and allowed to serve time at home. Every conviction also included court fines, usually a few thousand yuan.

Perpetrators’ contact information:

Zhao Shengsheng (赵生升), president of Shushan District Court: [phone]Xia Yunjiao (夏云娇), judge of Shushan District CourtZhang Qinghong (张庆虹), president of Shushan District Procuratorate: [phone], [phone]Li Jun (黎俊), prosecutor of Shushan District Procuratorate: [phone], [phone]

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

Related report:

Hefei City, Anhui Province: Over 40 Falun Gong Practitioners Indicted and Sentenced Since 2018 by Same Procuratorate and Court