Retired Practitioners Jailed in Qinghai Women's Prison

On December 26th, 2008, officers from Xining City Police Department in Qinghai Province secretly transferred Falun Gong practitioners Ms. Zhang Xiuhua and Ms. Zhao Zonghua, from Xining City Detention Centre to Qinghai Women's Prison. Not long before this, these two women were brought to court for a secret trial. None of their family members or relatives was notified. Ms. Zhang and Ms. Zhao appealed to a higher court. The higher court not only kept the case a secret but also issued a prison sentence. The court did not notify the women's families of the trial date, which is not in keeping with the legal process.

Ms. Zhang Xiulan, around 50 years old, is from Xining City. She retired from the Xining Special Steel Group Co. Ltd. On May 13th, 2008, she went to visit her parents who had just recovered from illnesses and met two other practitioners who were also visiting her parents at the same time. Officers from Chaoyang Police Station arrested the three practitioners under orders from Xining City Security and Police Departments. Charging the three practitioners with illegal assembly, the police ransacked their homes. Ms. Zhang was detained in the Xining City Detention Centre. When she was in the detention centre, her mother and sister tried to visit her several times, but they were turned away every time. Between October and December 2008, her mother and sister asked Wang Jianxi, a team leader at the detention centre, to take money to Ms. Zhang three times. Each time they gave him 200 yuan¹ to give to her. On January 4th, 2009, when Ms. Zhang was finally allowed to see her relatives, they learned that she had never received any of the money. During her four months of detention, Xining City Police Department fabricated charges and forced Ms. Zhang's husband to be a witness when his wife was charged with printing Falun Gong materials.

Ms. Zhao Zonghua is a retired teacher from Xining City Chaoyang Elementary School. She was awarded many times as an outstanding teacher at the school. Despite the fact that many students and parents respected her, under pressure from the Chinese Communist Party, the school officials persecuted her. She was forced to stop teaching at the school. Her teaching rank and salary were both lowered and she was assigned to clean toilets. On December 15th, 2007, she and her husband were both arrested by the police from Datong Town, Xining City. They have been detained since then and are being tortured relentlessly.

Ms. Zhang Xiulan and Ms. Zhao Zonghua were both sentenced to five years in prison. Qinghai Women's Prison's other name is the Leather and Feather Quilt and Clothing Factory.

Responsible parties contact information:
Wang Jianxi, team leader of Xining City Detention Centre: 86-971-3537502
Li Zhijian, head of the Political and Justice Committee and the person in charge of the Chengbei District 610 Office: 86-971-5507454 (Office), 86-13997037178 (Mobile)
Ju Wenbin, deputy head of the Political and Justice Committee: 86-971-5507485, 86-13369712793 (Mobile)
Deputy head of the 610 Office: 86-971-5507485, 86-13099786205 (Mobile)
Su Qingqing, head of prosecution section, Chengbei District Procuratorate: 86-971-5131073, 86-13897258918 (Mobile)

Note

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

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2009/1/12/193367.html