Henan Man Dies Four Months after Being Released from Detention for His Faith

A Huaiyang County, Henan Province resident died four months after he was released from a year of detention for practising Falun Gong, a spiritual and meditation discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

Mr. Li Junqi was arrested by officers from the Liuzhentun Police Station on October 21, 2017, four months after he finished serving a three-year prison term for his faith. He was constantly beaten during his imprisonment for not renouncing Falun Gong.

Mr. Li was thrown into the Huaiyang Detention Centre following his latest arrest. His family was never allowed to visit him, and they suspect that he was tortured during the one-year detention, as his health had deteriorated by the time he was released in October 2018. He was not able to recover, and passed away on February 12, 2019. He was 46.

Mr. Li's death is preceded by the passing of his parents, who, along with his sister Ms. Li Yuzhi, were also repeatedly targeted for refusing to renounce Falun Gong.

Prior to Mr. Li's imprisonment between 2014 and 2017, his sister served four years in prison, from 2008 to 2012.

During Mr. Li's arrest on May 5, 2008, an officer stomped on his elderly mother, kicked her and slapped her in the face when she tried to reason with the police and protect her son from being taken away. She struggled to stand up, only to be struck and pushed to the ground again. The elderly woman was covered with bruises, her face was swollen and she had difficulty breathing.

Her health deteriorated from then on and she lost the ability to take care of herself. She later passed away, though the timing remains to be investigated. Her husband, Mr. Li Yanlin, died in October 2014, after suffering years of harassment, beatings and torture during multiple arrests and detention. He was 83.