(Minghui.org) Ms. Sha Shuyan, 70, from Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province was recently sentenced to three and a half years in prison for her faith in Falun Gong, a mind-body practice that has been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party since July 1999.
Ms. Sha Shuyan’s prison sentence stemmed from her arrest on February 1, 2023, when she was reported for talking to a security guard about Falun Gong at the Hulan District Chinese Medicine Hospital. The arresting officers from the Yuanye Police Station took her to the Hulan District Domestic Security Office, which dispatched agents to raid her home the next morning.
Ms. Sha’s family went to the Yuanye Police Station to inquire about her case status. An officer said, “The Two Sessions are about to begin so we can’t release her. She’s 70 years old. We’ll release her after the Two Sessions are done.”
“Two Sessions” refer to the annual Plenary Sessions of the National People’s Congress (NPC) and of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) held in March every year.
The police, however, did not release Ms. Sha after the Two Sessions concluded. They told her family to wait for three months to get confirmation of her case status. The police never contacted her family.
The Daowai District Court scheduled a hearing for Ms. Sha’s case for May 9, 2023. Her lawyer and son went to the courthouse that day, but the security guard blocked her son from entering, saying that judge Zhang Ruixiang who was in charge of the case must personally grant permission for him to enter. The lawyer rushed to find judge Zhang and explained the situation. Zhang was very rude and said, “Sha Shuyan’s son can’t attend the trial!” He drove the lawyer out of his office.
The lawyer then advised Ms. Sha’s son to call all the numbers listed on the bulletin board by the courthouse gate. Her son was unable to talk to anyone, as the calls were either unanswered, went straight to voice messages, or did not connect.
The details of the trial remain to be investigated. It was learned recently that judge Zhang sentenced Ms. Sha to 3.5 years. The evidence used against her included the following two incidents that happened in 2022, when she was previously targeted for her faith.
Around 7 p.m. on March 4, 2022, the chief of the Guangming Police Station led about five officers and knocked on her door. As soon as her husband opened it, the police barged in and started ransacking the place. They confiscated three Falun Gong books and other valuable items before taking Ms. Sha to the police station.
Captain Zhuang Wenjun of the Hulan District Domestic Security Office came to the police station to interrogate Ms. Sha. She was released several hours later.
Ms. Sha’s husband, who suffered from stroke complications and had trouble walking, was so traumatized by her arrest that his condition worsened. He remained bedridden for one month and Ms. Sha had to care for him around the clock.
Three officers from the Guangming Police Station, including Zhao Xuguang, came to Ms. Sha’s home on August 14, 2022. They photographed her and her home. They also accused Ms. Sha of putting up posters about Falun Gong in the community.
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