(Minghui.org) Two residents from Hanzhong City, Shaanxi Province, were sentenced to five years in early October 2018 for practicing Falun Gong, a mind-body discipline persecuted by the communist regime since 1999. Both practitioners have filed appeals against the verdict.
Ms. Yang Hua, 55, and Ms. Wu Yali, 57, were arrested on June 22, 2017 while talking to the public about Falun Gong. The police ransacked their homes and kept them at Hantai District Detention Center.
The Hantai District Court held a secret trial of both women on November 16, 2017, without informing their lawyers or family members. The court didn't announce the verdicts until almost a year later.
This isn't the first time for both women to be targeted for their faith.
Ms. Yang's latest sentencing came less than three years after she served nine years in prison. Prior to her first imprisonment, she had also served two years in a labor camp for not giving up her faith that she credited for curing her rheumatoid heart disease that left her incapacitated.
Ms. Wu has been repeatedly arrested and was also fired from her workplace. She served two years in a labor camp and five years in prison before being arrested and sentenced again.
Both women's families are now very worried about their well-being and safety.
Previous reports:Two Shaanxi Women Tried Without Knowledge of Family or Lawyer
Once Imprisoned for 5 Years, Woman Arrested Again for Her Faith
Hanzhong City Court Refuses to Provide Verdict Documentation, Fearing Exposure On the Internet