(Minghui.org) Ms. Zhang Xiufen, 73, of the Fengtai District, Beijing was sentenced to six years for practicing Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Ms. Zhang’s prison sentence followed a surprise court hearing on October 11, 2024. The Fengtai District Court summoned her for a “talk” that day. She went as instructed and was shocked to learn that she was there to face the judge. By law, defendants should be given advance notice of their court dates.
A court-appointed lawyer entered a guilty plea for Ms. Zhang. The presiding judge kept interrupting her during her self-defense. It is unclear when exactly she was sentenced after the unannounced court hearing. She is currently appealing her wrongful conviction.
This is not the first time that Ms. Zhang has been targeted for her faith. She previously served three labor camp terms for a total of six years. She lost vision in one eye when she was beaten during her third labor camp term. She was arrested again in early October 2016 and later sentenced to four and a half years.
Details of Latest Persecution
Ms. Zhang’s latest ordeal stemmed from her initial arrest on July 5, 2022, after being reported for talking to people about Falun Gong. While she was interrogated at the Qingta Police Station in the Fengtai District, she was severely injured after being beaten by eight officers.
One 610 Office agent took Ms. Zhang’s key and broke into her home. Her Falun Gong books, materials, photo of Falun Gong’s founder, and 1,500 yuan in cash were confiscated.
Due to Ms. Zhang’s injuries, the local detention center refused to accept her. She was released on bail two days later. She went to the hospital and was diagnosed with compression fractures to her ribs, thoracic vertebrae (mid section of the spine that supports the rib cage), and lumbar vertebrae (lower section of the spine that bears the body’s weight).
Chief Liu Jiankun and officer Zhang Yue from the Qingta Police Station harassed Ms. Zhang at home multiple times in June 2023. One month later, they extended her one-year bail.
Officers from the Qingta Police Station arrested Ms. Zhang again at 6:30 a.m. on August 15, 2024 but released her that afternoon. They told her they submitted her case to the Fengtai District Procuratorate.
The procuratorate indicted Ms. Zhang at the end of September 2024. She was summoned to the Fengtai District Court soon afterwards to hear a clerk read her indictment out loud. She was shocked to hear that her son was listed as a prosecution witness without his knowledge. The prosecutor did so because her son signed her bail paperwork. Her past labor camp and prison terms were also listed as evidence that she was a repeat offender and the prosecutor suggested she be given a heavy prison sentence.
Ms. Zhang was allowed to go home after the court session. She later filed complaints against the Qingta Police Station, the Fengtai District Procuratorate and the Fengtai District Court for persecuting a law-abiding citizen like her.
The court tried her on October 11, 2024, after deceiving her into reporting to them that day. She was sentenced at a later date.
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