82-Year-Old Beijing Woman Gets Three Years for Her Faith in Falun Gong

(Minghui.org) An 82-year-old woman in Fengtai District, Beijing was sentenced to three years and fined 3,000 yuan on June 15, 2023 for her faith in Falun Gong, a mind-body practice that has been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party since July 1999. 

The police had attempted to take Ms. Deng Chunxian, who had been out on bail following her arrest three years ago, back into custody that day, but relented after she was found to have high blood pressure.

Ms. Deng was doing dishes at around 10 a.m. on April 23, 2020 when she heard a knock on the door. Five officers from the Yuegezhuang Police Station and Majiabao Police Station came in and confiscated her printer, computer, laminator, and Falun Gong books. They said someone had reported her for distributing informational materials about Falun Gong.

The police interrogated Ms. Deng at the Yuegezhuang Police Station before taking her to the Fengtai District Hospital for a physical examination at around 2 p.m. that day. They brought her back to the police station after the exam and held her there overnight. The next morning, they drove her to the Fengtai District Detention Center, which, however, refused to admit her because her exam results showed elevated blood pressure. The police released her in the afternoon and her bail was set for one year.

The Fengtai District Procuratorate called Ms. Deng’s son on March 24, 2021 and ordered him to deliver his mother to them. He refused.

The procuratorate then told the Yuegezhuang Police Station to “work” on her. A police officer surnamed An went to Ms. Deng’s bank and called her from here, posing as a bank manager. He said he had discovered some issues with her bank account and asked her to come to the bank with her ID to resolve the issues. She went, only to see “manager” An flashing an arrest warrant against her. She refused to sign the warrant and officer An took her straight to the procuratorate. 

Prosecutor Zhang Li showed Ms. Deng a list of items confiscated from her home during her arrest in 2020 and asked if those were indeed hers. Zhang then ordered her to sign the list. She refused because she knew her signature on the list would be used as evidence against her. Zhang then let her go home.

Two officers from the Majiabao Police Station knocked on Ms. Deng’s door at 9 p.m. on June 11, 2021. She had already gone to bed and didn’t hear the knock. The police then knocked on the door of her neighbors (an elderly couple in their 80s) and asked them who Ms. Deng had been in contact with. The couple said that Ms. Deng seldom left her house and that they didn’t see any visitors. They also condemned the police for harassing her non-stop.

Another officer went to Ms. Deng’s home at 11 a.m. four days later. He came across as a very polite man who said that Ms. Deng could always count on them if she needed any help since her son lived far away. But beginning at 6 a.m. the next morning, the same officer worked with the Majiabao street committee and hired two people to take turns staying outside her home around the clock to monitor her. 

Presiding judge Hu Chunsheng and his assistant judge Liu Ruizhen delivered a summon to Ms. Deng themselves on March 24, 2023. She appeared in the Fengtai District Court on April 11.

A court worker called Ms. Deng on June 11 and said she needed to have a physical examination on June 15. The court sent a car to pick her up four days later. The physical examination again indicated that she had high blood pressure. The court staffers took her to the Fengtai District Police Department after the examination. 

The police said they had intended to keep Ms. Deng in custody but needed to release her on bail due to her elevated blood pressure. She refused to sign the bail paperwork because she had broken no law by distributing Falun Gong informational materials. 

Before letting her go, the police showed her the court’s ruling, dated on June 15. She was sentenced to three years with a 3,000-yuan fine.

Perpetrators’ contact information:

Zhang Li (张莉), prosecutor, Fengtai District Procuratorate: [phone], [phone]Hu Chunsheng (胡春生), presiding judge, Fengtai District Court: [phone], [phone], [phone]Liu Ruizhen (刘瑞珍), assistant judge, Fengtai District Court: [phone]Song Weihao (宋蔚皓) and Cao Shouling (曹守令), jurors, Fengtai District Court