(Minghui.org) The Langfang City Intermediate Court in Hebei Province ruled on April 18, 2024 to uphold the guilty verdict against Mr. Zhang Xuefu, 51, a local man, for practicing Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

Mr. Zhang, a private school owner in Sanhe City (which is under the administration of Langfang City), was arrested on July 14, 2023 and appeared in the Sanhe City Court on January 5, 2024. Prosecutor Xu Lei of the Sanhe City Procuratorate recommended a prison term of three years and two months, which was exactly what Mr. Zhang’s family heard from an insider at the procuratorate when he was indicted in October 2023.

Mr. Zhang Xuefu

When judge Shi Shaolin gave Mr. Zhang the recommended prison sentence, it was obvious to his family that his term was pre-determined by the higher-ups. They hired two lawyers to appeal the wrongful conviction, but the Langfang City Intermediate Court rejected the appeal on April 18, 2024 without giving the lawyers a chance to submit their defense statements or holding an open hearing.

Presiding judge Chen Kexiang (+86-13582771719, 86+316-2609170), judges Zhang Jianhua (+86-13931682365, +86-316-2678083) and Feng Zhengyao (+86-316-2678231), Zhang Yuhan (assistant to judges, +86-316-2678235), and clerk Zhou Linfang signed the appeals ruling.

Arrest, Indictment, and Sentencing

Mr. Zhang was arrested on July 14, 2023. The Sanhe City Procuratorate approved his arrest 13 days later and moved his case to the Sanhe City Court on October 27, just a month after receiving the case from the police.

Mr. Zhang appeared in the Sanhe City Court on January 5, 2024. Only his daughter, older sister and younger brother were allowed in the courtroom. His other relatives and friends were stopped at the door, as the bailiff claimed that they had to apply for permission beforehand in order to attend the hearing.

Mr. Zhang’s two lawyers entered a not guilty plea on his behalf. He also testified in his own defense. They argued that no law has ever criminalized Falun Gong in China, and that the Falun Gong materials Mr. Zhang had were his lawful assets. They said that he didn’t violate any law or harm anyone by having or distributing Falun Gong informational materials.

Prosecutor Xu recommended a prison term of three years and two months.

A Life Transformed by Falun Gong

Mr. Zhang taught at the Shengjiatun Elementary School and the Sanhe City No. 14 Middle School before starting his own private school, which now boasts three campuses. He used to be a dominant, impulsive, and chauvinistic man, but he became humble, considerate, and kind after he took up Falun Gong in 2015. When his school had to shut down during the pandemic, he took out a loan to continue paying his faculty and staff.

Mr. Zhang credits Falun Gong for giving him a big heart and curing his facial paralysis. Because of this, he distributed Falun Gong informational materials to inform the public that Falun Gong was nothing like what is depicted by the communist regime’s hate propaganda.

In a letter to presiding judge Shi Shaolin, Mr. Zhang’s sister wrote, “My younger brother was very dominant. He didn’t agree with us on many things. He often got drunk at various social events. Sometimes he became irrational while drunk and even hit his wife once. When he didn’t return home after an event, my sister-in-law was very worried. She would call all of his friends to find him. My brother felt she made him lose face and often fought with her. Their conflict was so intense that they almost got a divorce.

“Because of the frequent drinking, my brother suffered severe gastric perforation and ulcer. He also had facial paralysis. He saw many doctors in Beijing, but none of them were able to cure him. He later began to practice Falun Gong and soon recovered. He became a different person. He quit drinking and stopped fighting with my sister-in-law. It’s Falun Gong that gave my brother a healthy body and a happy family. That’s the reason why he persists in practicing it.”

But despite the lack of legal basis for the persecution or any evidence to show how Mr. Zhang violated the law, the authorities still handed down the predetermined prison sentence.

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