(Minghui.org) Nine Falun Gong practitioners in Dalian City, Liaoning Province were arrested on March 18, 2018 for distributing materials exposing the persecution of their faith and the bloody history of the Chinese communist regime. Six months later, eight of them were sentenced to prison.
During the trial by Jinzhou District Court on September 25, 2018, the practitioners' lawyers entered a not guilty plea for them. The lawyers argued that no law in China has criminalized Falun Gong and no evidence supported the charge against their clients, “undermining law enforcement,” which is a standard pretext used against Falun Gong practitioners.
Ms. Wang Liguo, Ms. Sun Baoying, Ms. Gu Xiuhua, and Mr. Zhou Xing were sentenced to four years in prison; Ms. Zhang Sanman and Ms. Tan Chunrong were sentenced to three years and eight months in prison; Mr. Liu Jinglong got three years and three months and Mr. Li Tianxue received three years and two months.
The verdict for Mr. Liu Xiyong, 78, remains to be investigated.
Ms. Gu, Ms. Zhang, and Ms. Tan were taken from Dalian Detention Center to Liaoning Women's Prison on April 23, 2019. Ms. Wang and Ms. Sun were sent to the same prison one month later, on May 21.
Mr. Zhou, Mr. Liu and Mr. Li were transferred from Jinzhou Detention Center to Liaonan Prison on April 30.
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