Ms. Li Xuewei Is Sentenced to Seven Years in Prison after Four Years of Persecution

Ms. Li Xuewei lived in Japan for seven years. In February 2000, when she went to visit her relatives in China, she was arrested for having a "Falun Dafa in Japan" newspaper with her. The Chinese authorities illegally detained and threatened her. They revoked her passport, thus preventing her from returning to Japan with her husband. After suffering four years of persecution, she was illegally sentenced to seven years in prison on September 21, 2004.

During this period, Ms. Li's relatives and friends were suffering severe stress because of her situation. Her husband, who was heavily in debt, overcame many difficulties to travel to China to help his wife. However, there are no laws and no justice system to protect Falun Gong or its practitioners in China. No lawyers have the courage to represent her case. Jiang Zemin's state terrorism overrules the country's constitution and has become the "law" in persecuting Falun Gong.

Ms. Li's daughter turns six years old this year. Longing for her mother's return, she often cries quietly because she doesn't want others to hear her. She keeps saying, "When my mum is back, we'll go to Japan with my dad. We'll never be apart again."

Ms. Li is thirty-five, and worked as a kindergarten teacher. Her husband found a job in Japan in 1990, so Ms. Li joined him there in 1993. In 1996, Ms. Li suddenly contracted a serious case of pulmonary tuberculosis and was coughing up blood. The medical examination indicated that her lung was perforated; therefore she went to China for medical treatment. Although she tried hard to find an effective treatment, the disease was not cured. However, she miraculously recovered after practising Falun Gong, and returned to Japan.

In February 2000, Ms. Li went to China to participate in the Spring Festival with her relatives. Policeman Liu Jie took her to the Huancui District Police Department in Weihai City because she had a "Falun Dafa in Japan" newspaper in her possession. The police then confiscated her passport. She returned the next day to get her passport, when the police arrested her and illegally jailed her for 15 days. Afterward, a stranger and Long Lin, an agent from the Weihai City National Security Bureau, came to her home and threatened her. They said that only under one condition would they let her return to Japan: "You must work for the Chinese Intelligence Agency as a spy."

Ms. Li righteously rejected their demand, "Falun Dafa has no secrets. It is impossible for me to work for you. I would rather remain here than work for you as a spy."

Ms. Li tried to get her passport back, but the authorities refused. Ms. Li moved to Changchun City and later returned by train to Weihai City to try again to retrieve her passport. The police then claimed they had transferred the case to the Jilin Provincial Police Department. When Ms. Li went there, she was told that they had revoked her passport, thus preventing Ms. Li from returning to Japan. In addition, her two-year-old daughter's passport was automatically revoked because she couldn't apply for a visa to Japan. As a result, the family has been torn apart.

Upon hearing the bad news, Li Xuewei's husband was worried sick about his wife and daughter. He became exhausted and bitter from the pressure and his business went bankrupt. He had to resort to physical labour to repay a debt, which is equivalent to hundreds of thousands of yuan. The family were to have become permanent Japanese residents soon, but they have been torn apart by the Chinese authorities.

With no judicial authorities to hear her appeal, on August 1, 2001, Li Xuewei went to the Tiananmen Square Appeals Office to personally appeal her situation. She was detained, but was finally released because of the efforts of many friends.

Li Xuewei was again arrested at 6 p.m. on November 17, 2003, as she was taking several Falun Dafa books and some blank CDs to a fellow practitioner, a pharmacist at the Second Institute of Jilin University. Five police officers were lying in wait from the National Security Detachment of the Changchun City Police Department, the Nanguan District Police Department and the Quan'an Police Station. They took Ms. Li to the basement of a building, a secret place far from town, used for torturing Falun Gong practitioners.

The perpetrators lit only a candle to create an atmosphere of fear. It was very cold, so the police wore overcoats, but Ms. Li had on only light autumn clothing. They tortured Ms. Li in two-hour shifts. They beat, kicked and hung her up by her handcuffed hands. They then attempted to suffocate her with smoke and a plastic bag. To intensify the torture, the police punched her stomach while holding a plastic bag over her head. In addition, the police forced her to do "flying airplane" (a particularly painful position) and to stay that way for hours on end. The major abusers were from the National Security detachment of the city police department. Policeman Ma from the Nanguan District Department was also very vicious. He inserted bottles under her handcuffs to further tighten them around her wrists.

On August 20, 2004, after being illegally detained for nine months, Li Xuewei was sentenced in court, but the case was returned to the prosecutor's office for an unknown reason. However, on September 21, the court sentenced her to seven years in prison. Insisting on her innocence, Ms. Li filed an appeal.

Facing his wife's desperate situation and worried about his daughter, Li Xuewei's husband had to return to Japan alone. The three members of the family must now live in three different places.

The perpetrators:

Huancui District Police Department, Weihai City, policeman Liu Jie, office phone number: 86-631-5215208

Weihai City National Security Bureau: 86-631-5215208, policeman Lin

Nanguan District Procuratorate, Changchun City:

86-431-8655105, Li Jun is in charge of Ms. Li and Ms. Huang Yuxing 's case

Nanguan District Court, Changchun City:

86-431-8712076, Presiding Judge Zhao Bo, Deputy Judge Sun Jianbo, Judge Tian Xueyan, Deputy Administrator: Duan

Changchun City Middle Court (will be in charge of Ms. Li and Huang Yuxing's appellate): 86-431-8558000

The Third Detention Center, Changchun City (detained Ms. Li, Huang Yuxing and others): 86-431-4162709

Chinese version available at http://minghui.org/mh/articles/2004/10/12/86434.html