Falun Gong Practitioner Chen Changyuan Sentenced to Three Years in Prison

On April 29th 2009, Mr. Chen Changyuan, a practitioner from Chongqing, was sentenced to three years in prison by the Chengdu Gaoxin District Court in Sichuan Province.

On July 16th, 2008, while distributing leaflets exposing the persecution and telling people the facts about Falun Gong , Mr. Chen Changyuan was seized by a police officer of the Public Security Bureau, Gaoxin branch. He was formally arrested on August 21st, 2008, and his court hearing was on April 29th, 2009 in Gaoxin. The court building was surrounded by many police officers and vehicles. Only three family members were allowed in the courtroom, although many other people of unknown identities were allowed to attend. During the trial, the judge frequently interrupted the defence lawyer and his client's statements. Furthermore, Mr. Chen's wife was not allowed to speak. The situation was so unjust that she decided to leave the courtroom. After Mr. Chen was sentenced to three years of imprisonment, he indicated that he would appeal the ruling.

Mr. Chen's Elder Brother and Brother's Wife Arrested

Mr. Chen's elder brother Chen Changjun and his wife Yan Guangbi lived in Chongqing. They went to Chengdu to attend the court hearing but were stopped outside the court by a group of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials from Chongqing. The officials represented four agencies: Mr. Wu Ke, a member of the Political and Judiciary Committee of Jiangbei District, Chongqing; Mr. Li Zhiqin from the Guanyinqiao Police Station, Mr. Zhou Shengping, a security officer from Chongqing Eighteenth High School, and Mr. Yan Jiajun, party secretary of Chongqing Mitingzi Grade School. Mr. Chen and his wife were not allowed in the courtroom. Instead, they were kept in a reception room until the hearing was over. They were then sent back to Chongqing because they were practitioners.

Mr. Chen Changjun and his wife are retired school teachers from the Chongqing Eighteenth High School and the Chongqing Mitingzi Grade School, respectively. They left Chongqing for Chengdu on April 25th to attend his brother's hearing. The following day, Mr. Xiong Kerong, party secretary from Chongqing Eighteenth High School, called Mr. Chen's daughter Chen Yan and lured her to Chen's home. When she arrived, several CCP officials from the Chongqing Eighteenth High School were waiting. They forced her to open the door and confirmed that Mr. Chen and his wife were not home. Then, Mr. Zhang Fan, deputy principal of the Chongqing Eighteenth High School, along with security officer Mr. Zhou Shengping, the party secretary of Chongqing Mitingzi Grade School, Mr. Yan Jiajun, chief of Guangyinqiao Police Station and Mr. Yao, a police officer, came with two other persons to Chen Yan's house to determine the whereabouts of her parents. She didn't know where her parents were and was forced to call relatives to inquire.

Mr. and Ms. Chen Changjun are practitioners, and they were targeted after the persecution began on July 20th, 1999. Mr. Chen was sent to the Xishanping Forced Labour Camp for two years. and his wife was incarcerated last year. Both were under heavy pressure to give up their Falun Gong practice. Since they refused to give up, they have been monitored by guards from their schools since 2002. Some of the guards followed Mr. Chen even when he visited his mother in the hospital. The guards involved are Mou Hong, Xu Te, Xiong Honglin, Huang Tianbing, Liu Qingming, Ran Qigang, Xiang, Luo and Leng. In addition, the school withheld 20,000 yuan¹ in housing support and five years of retirement benefits belonging to Mr. Chen. Mr. Yan Jiajun, party secretary of Chongqing Mitingzi Grade School, is also holding Mrs. Chen's salary card.

Due to the long years of persecution, Mr. Chen's family has sustained multiple instances of serious injuries. His wife's eyesight has been severely impaired, but the schools and local police station officials have not stopped persecuting them.

Mr. and Mrs. Chen are currently being monitored at their home.

People and agencies involved in Mr. Chen Changyuan's case:

The Third Court, Chengdu Gaoxin District
Luo Weimin, criminal court presiding judge: 86-28-85310776, 86-28-853111319
Xie Gang, judge: 86-28-85311085
Liu Jia, secretary: 86-28-85311139

Prosecutor's office in the Gaoxin District of Chengdu
Li Fei: 86-28-85310665
Address: Tianhui North Street, Gaoxin District, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, PRC
P.O. Box 610041

West District Police Station of the Gaoxin Public Security Bureau
Perpetrators: Xie Xiaodi, Tong Hao, Chen Liang
Tel: 86-28-87958479, 86-28-87958478
Address: West District Police Station of the Gaoxin Public Security Bureau, Gaoxin District, Chengdu,

Sichuan Province, PRC
P.O. Box 611731

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/2009/5/2/200079.html