Henan Human Rights Defender He Fangmei, Sentenced to 5 Years and 6 Months, Spends Her 41st Birthday in Prison

（(Rights Defense Network Information Center report)）On October 9, 2026， this website learned：yesterday（October 9, 2026），Henan human rights defender He Fangmei， who was sentenced to 5 years and 6 months， spent her 41st birthday in prison。He Fangmei has 84 days remaining until the end of her sentence。

He Fangmei’s profile：Born on October 8, 1985， she is from Huixian， Xinxiang City， Henan Province， and uses the online name “Thirteenth Sister”， her occupation is unknown， she is the founder of the “Vaccine Babies’ Home” rights defense group， a human rights defender， and a Chinese rights defender currently in custody。

On March 23, 2018， after her younger daughter， then just 1 year and 10 months old， was given the DTP vaccine and became paralyzed all over， He Fangmei sought help and filed complaints through various channels， but all were rejected， so she pursued her rights at successively higher levels to seek redress， and after similar cases of babies being harmed by vaccines occurred in several other places， she went on to form the “Vaccine Babies’ Home” rights defense group with others to make a joint appeal， seeking the authorities’ attention and reasonable compensation and treatment；however， the authorities repeatedly delayed taking action， forcing her to petition in Beijing， where she was repeatedly arrested and targeted；on March 5, 2019， during the Chinese Communist Party’s Two Sessions， she went with parents of children harmed by vaccines from different parts of the country to Wangfujing in Beijing to raise money for children with disabilities， and was subsequently placed under administrative detention for 15 days by Huixian police in Xinxiang City；on March 21， Huixian police again criminally detained her on suspicion of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble”， and she was held at the Xinxiang City Detention Center in Henan Province；because she continued to refuse to admit guilt during this period， on April 26, 2019， the Huixian City Procuratorate in Xinxiang City approved her arrest on the same charge， and she was later indicted on six counts, with a recommended sentence of one year；on November 15 of that year， her case was formally heard at the Huixian County Court in Henan Province；on January 10, 2020， the Huixian County Procuratorate withdrew the charges on the grounds of “unclear facts and insufficient evidence”， and she was later released without charge；

On May 18, 2020， because she continued to speak out, calling for the state to legislate to resolve vaccine-related problems and urging the United Nations to pay attention to China’s vaccine issues, among other things， she was forcibly disappeared again in Beijing；

After her release， on October 2, 2020， because the local government obstructed her from taking her daughter, who had been disabled by a vaccine, to receive medical care， she protested by splashing ink on the Huixian government sign and was placed under administrative detention， then on October 9 she protested by splashing paint on the Huixian Municipal Government for a second time；

On October 14, 2020， she learned that she, her husband, their then six-year-old son and three-year-old daughter with disabilities had all been taken away by Huixian police， she was subsequently placed under residential surveillance at a designated location at Gongji Hospital in Xinxiang City on suspicion of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble”， for 18 months， during which she gave birth to her youngest daughter; on March 23, 2021， Huixian police formally arrested her on suspicion of 「bigamy」 and 「picking quarrels and provoking trouble」， while her husband Li Xin was forcibly disappeared， and the whereabouts of her son and daughter with disabilities were also unknown; in April 2022， after her defense lawyer became involved， it was learned that her case had already been heard at first instance， but there had been no decision， and her family had not been notified; on October 23, 2024， her case was again decided at first instance by the Huixian County Court in Henan Province， and she was ultimately sentenced to 5 years and 6 months in prison for “bigamy and picking quarrels and provoking trouble”；she was dissatisfied and appealed；it was learned on January 21, 2025， that the Henan Xinxiang Intermediate People’s Court had ruled on appeal to uphold the original sentence， which runs until January 1, 2027。

It is reported that her husband Li Xin， formerly an editor at Nandu.com， was also wrongfully sentenced to five years on an unspecified charge for joining her in rights defense activities， and is serving his sentence at Jiaozuo Prison in Henan; their son was sent by the authorities to live with a villager， and their two young daughters were initially held at Gongji Hospital， but were moved elsewhere in early April 2024， and the family has been unable to contact them ever since; after hearing about this， she became very concerned about the children’s living conditions， physical and mental health and education， and hopes to get out soon to care for and be with them。 She was previously held at the Xinxiang City Detention Center 。In March 2026 she was transferred to Zhengzhou Women’s Prison in Zhongmu County to serve her sentence。In April 2026 she was transferred again to Luoyang Women’s Prison。

This website will continue to follow He Fangmei’s situation in prison。