(Minghui.org) A 75-year-old woman in Laishui County, Hebei Province has been facing constant harassment from the authorities since she was released on May 9, 2023 after being sentenced to three years with four years’ probation.
Ms. Liu Yumin was targeted because of her faith in Falun Gong, a mind-body practice that has been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party since July 1999.
The Laishui County Judicial Bureau established a community corrections task force on May 30, 2023 to specifically “work on” Ms. Liu. The task force was headed by Zuo Cheng (director of the judicial bureau), with members including officials Hu Fenglan and Wang Baojun of Dongguan Village in Laishui County. The goal was to force Ms. Liu to renounce Falun Gong.
The task force ordered Ms. Liu to report to them on a regular basis and attend scheduled “study sessions.” If she could not report to them in person, she was to submit photos of herself at home.
As Ms. Liu was still recovering from the abuse she suffered during her detention, she refused to comply with the demand. The task force then threatened to take her back into custody.
Ms. Liu and her loved ones were ordered to keep their phones on 24/7 so as to be on standby to answer the task force’s calls. They were also instructed to download a certain app, which has the function to track her location and monitor her activities.
Ms. Liu was also forbidden to go out of town.
While initially relieved at her release, Ms. Liu’s family are now feeling tremendous pressure as a result of the relentless harassment.
Ms. Liu, a former elementary school teacher, was arrested at her son’s home on March 18, 2022 for her faith in Falun Gong. She was held at the Baoding City Detention Center. Her case was later submitted to the Zhuozhou City Procuratorate, which indicted her and moved her case to the Zhuozhou City Court.
The court initially scheduled a hearing for December 27, 2022, but canceled it after the presiding judge, Xie Wenhai, tested positive for COVID-19. The rescheduled hearing was held on January 11, 2023, through a video call.
According to her family, Ms. Liu appeared to be in very poor health. She’d lost much of her hair. Due to high blood pressure, she was dizzy and had pain in her legs. She could only walk with the support of two people.
The court held the second hearing on March 7, 2023. Two lawyers entered a not-guilty plea for Ms. Liu. They argued that no law has ever criminalized Falun Gong in China and that she didn’t violate any law by sharing information about Falun Gong with others.
Three of Ms. Liu’s family members attended the hearing. They were allowed to visit with her after the court session. They were glad to know that her high blood pressure had dropped a bit since her last hearing two months ago.
The judge held the third hearing on March 24, before convicting Ms. Liu on May 9 and ordering her family to pick her up at the detention center that same day. Before releasing her, the detention center authorities ordered Ms. Liu to sign a letter, which stated that the detention center weren’t responsible for her condition.
One week after Ms. Liu returned home, she was still having trouble sleeping at night and was very sensitive to any sound.
In the past 24 years of persecution, Ms. Liu was fired by the elementary school where she worked, for refusing to give up her faith. She also faced constant arrests, home ransacking, and harassment. When she was detained, the officers beat her, hung her up by handcuffs, force-fed her, and burned her with cigarettes.
Her husband, Mr. Wu Yanshui, who also practiced Falun Gong, died on May 20, 2001, due to the abuse he suffered in custody.
75-year-old Ailing Woman Returns Home After Receiving a Probation Term
Elderly Woman Widowed in the Persecution of Falun Gong Faces Prison Sentence After Two Hearings
Incapacitated 75-year-old Woman Tried for Her Faith in Falun Gong
76-year-old Widow on Hunger Strike for 20 Days and Counting
Police Torture Wu Yanshui to Death in Local Detention Center