69-Year-Old Woman Dies 6 Months After Release on Medical Parole

“I don't want to die. I still want to live.”

This is what Ms. Zhao Yaling said to her family during her final days. She died on January 12th, 2015, six months after her release on medical parole. She was 69.

Ms. Zhao and ten other Falun Gong practitioners in Changsha County, Hunan Province were arrested over a five-day period last March. Dubbed “F1307,” their case was considered a major one by the Ministry of Public Security. The arrest was preceded by months of police monitoring and planning.

Two of the arrested practitioners were soon released, but the local procuratorate approved the formal arrest of the remaining nine people, including Ms. Zhao, one month later.

Changsha City No. 4 Women's Detention Centre released Ms. Zhao on medical parole last June after she developed life-threatening conditions. The procuratorate proceeded to charge the other eight practitioners with “intercepting TV signals [to broadcast programmes exposing the persecution of Falun Gong].”

The local authorities continued to harass Ms. Zhao at home and threatened to charge her as soon as she recovered. The relentless pressure took a toll on her already-deteriorating health, and she passed away this January. Two weeks later, the other eight practitioners were tried in court.

Ms. Zhao began to practice Falun Gong in 2004. The practice not only helped her recover from the loss of her parents who had died one year earlier, but also restored her health. She looked so much younger than her age that bus drivers often questioned her use of a senior bus pass.

Having benefited so much from Falun Gong, she made it a priority to tell people about the Chinese communist regime's violent persecution of the practice that transformed her life.

However, this landed her on the government's radar. Police monitored her for months before arresting her on March 30th, 2014.

Summary of Key Persecution Facts:

Name: Zhao Yaling (赵亚玲)
Gender: Female
Age: 69
Address: Changsha, Hunan Province
Date of Death: January 12th, 2015
Date of Most Recent Arrest: March 30th, 2014
Most Recent Place of Detention: Changsha City Fourth Women's Detention Centre (长沙市第四女子看守所)
City: Changsha
Province: Hunan