(Minghui.org) After two secret court hearings, a Nanchang City, Jiangxi Province, resident was sentenced to three years and two months for her faith in Falun Gong. Ms. Zhou Qunhui’s family was kept in the dark about her prosecution process. The judge didn’t allow them to hire a lawyer. She also wasn’t given a copy of her indictment. Ms. Zhou has appealed the verdict.
Ms. Zhou Qunhui, 67, was arrested at home on the afternoon of March 15, 2023, by several officers from the Gangcheng Police Station and two staff members of the local residential committee. They claimed that someone reported her for printing informational materials of Falun Gong at home. Her printers, laptop, Falun Gong books, and collections of experience sharing articles written by other Falun Gong practitioners were confiscated.
A police officer said during the raid, “This is the first time I’ve done this. I’m learning while doing it.” Another one said, “We know that Falun Gong is good, but you aren’t allowed to practice it.”
After the police took Ms. Zhou to the Nanchang City Detention Center, they didn’t provide her family with any updates about her case. In October 2023, her family found that she had been indicted and her case was with the Xihu District Court. They went to the court to inquire about her situation, only to be told that the judge had already held two hearings on her case. They asked judge Zhang Yujuan about Ms. Zhou’s prison sentence. Zhang replied, “The verdict is in the drawer. It would be between one and three years,” adding, “You aren’t allowed to hire a lawyer or appeal. It’s useless and a waste of money.”
Ms. Zhou’s family was shocked to witness how the judge could be so unscrupulous in wrongfully sentencing a person for merely practicing her faith. They questioned the judge as to why she didn’t hold a public hearing of their loved one, why she didn’t inform them of the hearings, and why she didn’t allow them to hire a lawyer. They filed a complaint against Zhang in November 2023, but nothing came of it.
On December 9, 2023, judge Zhang announced that Ms. Zhou was sentenced to three years and two months. Her family still wasn’t informed of the sentencing hearing. They only found out about it when they went to the court to inquire about the case.
The family also learned that the sentencing hearing was held virtually, despite there being no pandemic restrictions at the time. Ms. Zhou later told them that the audio quality was very poor, and she couldn’t hear anything the judge said during the hearing. So far, she hasn’t been given a copy of her indictment and still doesn’t know what charges were brought against her or the basis for the sentencing.
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