Ms. Yang Shifen Dies in Fujian Province Two Days after Being Released, Six More Practitioners Arrested

One of the more than 10 practitioners arrested earlier this year in Fujian Province, Ms. Yang Shifen from Shishi City, died on March 9th, 2014, two days after being released from a detention centre. The large-scale, province-wide arrests have not eased, as six more Falun Gong practitioners were recently arrested.

Ms. Yang Shifeng Dies Two Days after Being Released

Ms. Yang was arrested on the morning on February 23rd, 2014, for telling people the facts about Falun Gong. She was taken to the Jiulongshan Detention Centre in Shishi City and hospitalized on March 6th at the Huaqiao Hospital.

When Ms. Yang was released on March 8th, she experienced frequent shortness of breath which worsened over the next 24 hours. By the time she passed away the next day, her entire body was purple, she couldn't talk, and there was foam at her mouth.

Ms. Yang Shifeng had been repeatedly harassed by local Chinese Communist Party (CCP) during the past few years. Her home was ransacked multiple times and her eldest daughter has also been arrested.

Six More Practitioners Arrested

Mr. Pan Lianqiao, in his 50s, is from Hongkou Village in Xitan Township, Fuan City. He was arrested on his way to Fuan City at around 8 p.m. on April 23rd, 2014.

Ms. Huang Lianying from the Cangshan District in Fuzhou City was arrested in the afternoon of April 19th, 2014, for distributing Falun Gong fliers. Police officers from the Gulou District made the arrest and took her to a detention centre. The police said she would be detained for 15 days.

Ms. Dai Zhenzhu from Fuzhou City went to Xiamen City in February 2014 to visit her daughter. Her phone calls to local practitioners were monitored and Ms. Dai was arrested in late February. She was released on March 28 after being detained for more than a month.

Ms. Wu Xuexia from Zhangping City disappeared during a train ride from Xiamen to Wuyishan, where her husband works, on the evening of March 31st. Five police officers from Zhangping City and three from the Zhangping City Railway Police Station broke into her home the next morning and confiscated materials exposing the persecution of Falun Gong. Ms. Wu was detained at the Zhangping City Detention Centre for two weeks before being transferred to another detention centre.

Mr. Tang Fuxing from Zhangping City was arrested on the morning of April 3rd, while going through a security check at the Zhangping Train Station. Officers from the Zhangping City Railway Police Station detained him for two weeks before releasing him on April 17th. The police refused to return many of the personal belongings, including a computer, which they had confiscated.

Mr. Wei Yunrong is 77 years old and from Luokeng Village in Xinqiao Township, Changting County. He was reported to the police for distributing Falun Gong fliers in Shiren Village on April 17th and arrested around noon by Xinqiao Township Police Station officers, including Zeng Zhaojin from the Stability Maintenance Office. Mr. Wei's home was ransacked and the police confiscated Falun Gong materials and 800 yuan¹. He was released on bail at around 6 p.m.

16 Total Arrests in the Past Two Months, Three To Be Tried a Third Time

According to reports published on the Minghui website, a total of 16 Falun Gong practitioners have been arrested in the past two months in Fujian Province and three are facing a third trial.

Besides Ms. Yang Shifen and the six practitioners noted above, the following practitioners have been arrested within the past two months: Ms. Gao Su, Ms. Lin Shaoju, Ms. Ye Biyu, Ms. Wei Shuyi, Ms. Li Meiying, Mr. Chen Saixiong from Xiapu County, Ms. Zhang Shuilian, Ms. Lin Meifang, and Ms. Wang Zhumei from Fuzhou City.

The three practitioners facing trial are Ms. Zhu Fengling, Ms. Li Huiying, and Ms. Guo Fengjie. All three were arrested in May 2013 and tried earlier this year.

Note

1. "Yuan" is the Chinese currency; 500 yuan is equal to the average monthly income of an urban worker in China.