Driven Insane in Police Custody, Woman Made to Stand Trial

Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Sun Jinjun was tried in Tiexi District Court in Liaoning province on August 14th, 2015. She was charged with practising and distributing information about Falun Gong.

Her lawyer argued that Ms. Sun should not have been prosecuted in the first place, as no law in China has ever criminalized the practice of Falun Gong, and that she did nothing wrong by pursuing her spiritual belief.

Ms. Sun developed schizophrenia 15 years ago as a result of abuse she suffered at a labour camp. She had a relapse following her latest arrest on July 21st, 2014. Her lawyer protested the judge's decision to put an incompetent defendant on trial, but was unsuccessful.

Ms. Sun remains detained. It is unclear when the next hearing will take place.

Latest Arrest

Ms. Sun went to the home of Ms. Zhou Gaiqing, who is a Falun Gong practitioner, to borrow an umbrella on a rainy July 21st. She was doing meditation at the time when officers from Yongle Police Station raided Ms. Zhou's house.

Ms. Sun was also arrested because she practises Falun Gong, and has since been detained at Anshan Women's Detention Centre. There, she endured physical and mental torture, and had a relapse of schizophrenia.

Previous Persecution

Ms. Sun was a middle school art teacher. She was reported in 2000 for saying “Falun Gong is good for the country and for the people” in her classroom. She was arrested and sentenced to two years in Anshan City Forced Labour Camp. She was then secretly transferred to Masanjia Labour Comp for ten months beyond her original term.

In the labour camp, Ms. Sun was held in solitary confinement, forced to stand still for extended hours, and deprived of sleep. Her husband divorced her because of the mental stress. Their child was only four years old at the time. Because of the physical and mental persecution and stress from the divorce, she developed symptoms of schizophrenia.

She continued to do the Falun Gong exercises after her release, and gradually recovered her health.

Perpetrators' contact information:
Fan Lianbao (范连宝): secretary, Tiexi District Political and Legal Affairs Committee
Wang Dengke (王登科): head, Tiexi District Domestic Security Division, +86-13904200240
Zhang Yu (张禹): prosecutor, Tiexi District Procuratorate. +86-15541256667 (Mobile)
Guan Tiehua (关铁华): presiding judge, Tiexi District Court: +86-412-2983536 (Work), +86-412-6343222 (Home), +86-136042006780 (Mobile)
Tong Shouhui(佟守辉): judge, Tiexi District Court: +86-412-2983556 (Work), +86-1394122919 (Mobile)