(Minghui.org) A 65-year-old resident of Leshan City, Sichuan Province was secretly sentenced to three years in February 2020 for his faith in Falun Gong. He is currently imprisoned at Jiazhou Prison.
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is an ancient spiritual and meditation discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Mr. Li Shisong was arrested on November 5, 2019 and his house was ransacked. It was reported that the community officers notified Mr. Li's relatives in February 2020 to deliver clothes to him and later told them that his subsistence allowance would be deducted from February onwards.
In the persecution of Falun Gong, many practitioners are deprived of their pensions or low-income subsidies while serving time for their faith.
Prior to his latest arrest, Mr. Li was arrested multiple times. He was first arrested in 1999 for attending a gathering with other Falun Gong practitioners. He was detained for half a month and his clothes and 800 yuan in cash were snatched away by inmates, leaving him with only a shirt in the winter. He was later taken home by his family.
In March 2000, Mr. Li was given 1.5 years of forced labor at Xinhua Forced Labor Camp. As he refused to renounce his faith, he was shocked with electric batons, beaten, deprived of sleep, and forced to do unpaid labor for long hours. The authorities extended his term for more than eight months. Instead of being released in September 2001, he didn’t go home until May 2002.
Only a few months later, Mr. Li was arrested again and sentenced to four years in December 2002. While serving time at the No. 2 Division in Deyang Prison, he was often made to stand until near midnight. On September 1, 2005, Mr. Li and several practitioners who refused to renounce their faith were transferred to the No. 3 Division and forced to work until 1 a.m. every day.
In 2007, Mr. Li and over 30 practitioners were targeted during a mass arrest. Mr. Li and 12 other practitioners were later sent to Dashiqiao Brainwashing Center.
