(Minghui.org) Falun Gong practitioners Mr. He Yuhu, Ms. Han Xiufang, Mr. Jin Yinwu, and Ms. Feng Caihong have been illegally sentenced to three years of imprisonment in Huining County, Gansu Province. They had already been detained for a year and a half. All four practitioners and their families appealed to the higher court.
Around March 10, 2013, their case was transferred to the Baiyin City Intermediate Court. Li Fumin, the chief judge of the Criminal Court of the Baiyin City Intermediate Court, was in charge of the hearing. The practitioners' families called Li Fumin several times, but he hung up and would not answer the phone again after he heard the case was about Falun Gong. He also could not be found in the courthouse.
Mr. He Yuhu
Mr. He Yuhu, 47, is from Huishi Town in Huining County. He was the former Gangou Township head. He was weak as a child, but after he practiced Falun Gong, his health dramatically improved. He followed the Falun Gong principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, and always treated others well. All of his illnesses disappeared and he was very happy.
On July 20, 1999, Jiang Zemin and his gang began to cruelly persecute Falun Gong, and all the media slandered Falun Gong and the founder of the practice, Master Li Hongzhi. There were nationwide arrests of Falun Gong practitioners, and Huining County was no exception. Many innocent practitioners, including Mr. He, were harassed by the police department and the police stations in Huining County. The head of the Gangou Police Station, Ma Pengfei, and the vice Party secretary of the Gangou Township, Hu Qiaohua (female), broke into Mr. He's office and took his Dafa books. They sent him to the brainwashing session organized by the Gangou Police Station and tortured him for more than two weeks. He was forced to report to the police station at 6 a.m. every day and could not return home until 6 p.m. He was also forced to do running exercises, push-ups, and military squats. If he failed to carry out their orders, he was beaten. He suffered severe physical and mental trauma.
On September 24, 2011, when Mr. He, Han Xiufang, and several other practitioners were clarifying the truth in Zhongchuan Township, they were arrested by officer Pu Zhongxue from Zhongchuan Police Station and head of the Huining County National Security Division Li Yonggang. Their houses were searched and the officers took their Dafa books, bank books, and other valuables.
Mr. He Yuhu's family hired a lawyer from Beijing. During the Procuratorate's investigation, the local practitioners extensively clarified the truth to those working in the police system, procuratorate, and court. Meanwhile, the lawyer talked to the procurators from the perspective of the laws and proved to them that practicing Falun Gong in China was completely justified and therefore should be protected by law. The Procuratorate in Huining County rejected the case twice for “insufficient evidence.”
Huining County 610 Office pressures the legal system
The Political and Legal Affairs Committee in Huining County and the 610 Office were thrown into a panic when the Procuratorate rejected the case. They forced the Procuratorate to approve the arrest and exerted pressure on the court. They then filed a spurious charge against the lawyer with the Beijing Judicial Bureau so that he could no longer speak out in defense of Falun Gong practitioners. Kang Yingxiang, the director of the 610 Office in Huining County, even threatened the families that the lawyer from Beijing had offended the provincial leaders and if they continued to retain him, the court would give the practitioners an even more severe sentence. Kang Yingxiang also threatened to have Mr. He Yuhu fired from his job.
Kang Yingxiang also forced local attorney Zhang Wuxiong to forge a false employment contract to try to be named as Mr. He Yuhu's new lawyer. When Zhang Wuxiong met with Mr. He, he tried to deceive him. Zhang said, "You should first confess that you are guilty, and I will then defend you as innocent." When Zhang Wuxiong's trick was seen through, he claimed that he was forced to do it against his will by Kang Yingxiang.
Ms. Wang, Mr. He's relative, went to clarify the truth to Kang Yingxiang several times and told him about the retribution people who continued to persecute practitioners had encountered. Instead of listening, Kang got irritated and yelled at Ms. Wang, "Are you threatening me? Go to Beijing and sue me!"
The public prosecutor's inept performance
On February 28, 2012, Huining County Court put the four practitioners on trial. During the trial, the lawyer hired by the families established the practitioners' innocence from a legal standpoint and showed that everything they did was protected by the law. The lawyer's upright defense left judge Yan Longbing speechless.
In the court, judge Yan asked Mr. He if those in charge of his case had used torture to extort a confession from him. Mr. He answered that he had been beaten so badly that he was now deaf in his right ear. Yan Longbing had no response.
When public prosecutor Liu Hongmei slandered Dafa in court, the lawyer interrupted her twice. Liu Hongmei roared, "The Ministry of Public Security said Falun Gong is a cult! You practice it and you can be sentenced to three to seven years!"
The lawyer responded, "With no fingerprints, the 'evidence' put forth by the public prosecutor has no lawful basis; no law defines Falun Gong as a cult; furthermore, the Procuratorate had no right to pass a sentence in place of the court." The public prosecutor couldn't refute the lawyer's argument.
The lawyer said, “In the face of evil, if you remain silent, you are assisting the evil. If you sentence an innocent person, whatever the reason, it is a crime and is also against your conscience. Judges, please respect the rights of citizens, accept your historic responsibilities, face your conscience, and, based on the law, release the defendants with no charges.”
He also said, "The prosecutors and judges are the final line of defense to uphold justice in society, and the people have placed their hopes in you. Of course, the laws and order are necessary, and must be obeyed; however, in the final analysis, any laws or orders must bow to the human conscience and sense of justice.
It was learned that the Huining County Court judges had privately said that this case was not up to the standard of registration in the first place. However, they eventually chose to follow the regime. On November 23, 2012, the Huining County Court secretly sentenced the four practitioners each to three years of imprisonment, without notifying their families or their lawyer in advance.
Personnel participating in the persecution:
Li Jihui, former secretary and head of the Police Department in Yuning County: +86-1363936100, +86-13639304033, +86-943-3220110, +86-943-3221465 (Office)
Kang Yingxiang, head of the 610 Office: +86-13639361376; +86-943-3221465 (Office)
Related articles:
“President of Huining County Criminal Court in Gansu Province Abuses the Law and Frames the Innocent”
http://en.minghui.org/html/articles/2013/2/5/137375.html
“Four Practitioners Including Mr. He Yuhu Wrongfully Sentenced in Gansu Province”
http://en.minghui.org/html/articles/2012/12/30/136861.html
