(Minghui.org) A woman was tried a year after her arrest and sentenced to eight years in prison for her faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline persecuted by the communist regime in China.
The police arrested Ms. Jiao Lili at her residence in Lanzhou City in September 2014. She was tried in October 2015 by the Chengguan District Court and taken to Gansu Woman’s Prison in May 2016. The authorities physically abused her in their attempts to force her to renounce her belief.
The guards instigated other prisoners to watch Ms. Jiao around the clock. They forced her to squat in one position for long periods of time and beat her if she moved even slightly. Her legs became severely swollen as a result. When she couldn’t squat anymore, a guard shocked her with an electric baton, causing serious burns on her waist. Police instructed other prisoners to force her to write a “thought report” denouncing Falun Gong, which they tried to do every day.
One day in the first half of 2017, Ms. Jiao fell unconscious out of her bed, totally worn out from the torture. After she came to, she couldn't see for a while, and half of her face was bruised. She needed help with everyday tasks, including using the toilet. Nevertheless, the torture continued.
The guards instigated prisoners to torture Ms. Jiao to get her to reveal the names of other practitioners. The prisoners would receive sentence reductions if they succeeded.
Ms. Jiao has been arrested and detained many times since the persecution of Falun Gong started in 1999. The first time was in April 2000, when she was tortured in a forced labor camp for over a year. In November 2011, she was sentenced to five years in prison after being arrested for hanging up Falun Gong banners. She was beaten, shocked with electric batons, and forced to do labor-intensive work in Gansu Woman’s Prison.
In 2010, she was arrested and tortured for 36 days in detention. The police intended to put her in a forced labor camp for a year, but the camp refused to take her because of her deteriorating health. She was thus released.
Related reports:Falun Gong Practitioner Jiao Lili from Langzhou City, Gansu Province PersecutedMs. Jiao Lili Repeatedly Imprisoned