Woman Who Lived in Fear and Threatened by Police for Her Faith Dies While Cooking for her Family

A 68-year-old woman in Dongying City, Shandong Province, suddenly vomited blood and collapsed while cooking for her family on October 19, 2019. She was pronounced dead at the hospital.

Ms. Ren Guohua’s tragic death capped a two-decade-long ordeal for refusing to give up her faith in Falun Gong, a mind-body discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

The year preceding her death saw Ms. Ren last arrested in October 2018 for talking to people about Falun Gong and later being harassed at home by police after she was released on bail.

The police also submitted her case to the procuratorate, which forwarded it to Dongying District Court. Just weeks before Ms. Ren's death, a staff member from the court threatened to sentence her to prison soon.

Ms. Ren lived in fear and found it hard to cope. The mental stress finally took a toll on her health and eventually claimed her life.

Prior to her latest arrest, Ms. Ren was arrested in April 2011 for distributing informational materials in Xinjiang Province while visiting a relative there. She was sentenced to three years in Urumqi Women’s Prison and released on November 1, 2014.

Ms. Ren was arrested again two years later while talking to people about Falun Gong at a farmers’ market on October 14, 2016. The police ransacked her home and extorted 5,000 yuan from her.

While interrogating her, the police attempted to lock her to a chair. When she refused to comply, they dragged and kicked her. One officer force-fed her with water. She almost suffocated.

Another officer slapped her in the face. Her face was still swollen one month later, and she also suffered from headaches.

The police held her in detention while her daughter was going through major surgery. They also ordered Ms. Ren to report to them once every week after she was released.