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Pastor Zhou Songlin and Elder Ding Zhongfu, sentenced to 4 years and 6 months and 4 years respectively in the Hefei Ganquan Church case, both transferred to Xuancheng Prison to serve their sentences
Pastor Zhou Songlin and Elder Ding Zhongfu of Hefei Ganquan Church were transferred to Xuancheng Prison in July 2026 to serve sentences for fraud. Zhou was sentenced to four years and six months and fined 30,000 yuan; Ding received four years and a 28,000-yuan fine. Their convictions followed their November 30, 2023 arrests and February 13, 2026 judgments. On May 7, 2026, their appeals were rejected.Shandong Zaozhuang rights activist Zhang Chao arrested on suspicion of picking quarrels and provoking trouble
On June 4, 2026, Shandong rights activist Zhang Chao, also known by the Dharma name Shi Daoguo, photographed the area outside Tiananmen Square’s railings and posted the images with a mourning poem on social media. Zaozhuang state security officers took him from Beijing early June 5; he was criminally detained June 6 and formally arrested June 18. He is held at Zaozhuang No. 1 Detention Center.Feng Zhenghu: Guide and Template for Writing a Demand Letter Concerning a Court’s Failure to Register a Case Within the Statutory Period
The article explains that under Articles 51 and 52 of China’s Administrative Litigation Law, a court must either register a claim within seven days or issue a reasoned ruling refusing registration. It describes demand letters as non-statutory reminders that preserve evidence and support subsequent remedies. It outlines their structure, including factual chronology, legal grounds, demands, attachments and notice of possible complaints to higher courts, procuratorates and people’s congresses.Case Details and Biography of Ms. Zhang Chenglan, a Falun Gong Practitioner from Jinan, Shandong, Sentenced to Three Years in Prison
A Rights Defense Network Information Center report dated July 28, 2026, described Zhang Chenglan, a Falun Gong practitioner and former engineer from Jinan, Shandong. Police arrested Zhang, her husband Liu Ruping and more than 40 practitioners on September 29, 2025; at least 19 were criminally detained. The Changqing District Court tried the couple on March 13, 2026. Zhang was sentenced to three years and fined as part of a joint 18,000-yuan penalty.Case details and biography of Liu Ruping, a Falun Gong practitioner from Jinan, Shandong, sentenced to 3 years and 6 months
Liu Ruping, a Falun Gong practitioner from Jinan, Shandong, was sentenced to three years and six months on April 15, 2026, while his wife, Zhang Chenglan, received a three-year sentence. Police arrested them and more than 40 other practitioners on September 29, 2025. Their trial took place on March 13, 2026, and they were fined a total of 18,000 yuan. Liu’s sentence runs until March 28, 2029.Case Details and Biography of Ms. Ji Fenglan, a Falun Gong Practitioner from Jinan, Shandong, Sentenced to 4 Years
A Rights Defense Network Information Center report said Ji Fenglan, a Falun Gong practitioner and retired Jinan Locomotive Factory employee from Jinan, Shandong, was arrested with more than 40 others on September 29, 2025. The Changqing District Court tried her around early April 2026 and sentenced her to four years on June 26. She was reportedly given daily blood-pressure-lowering injections in detention. Her sentence ends September 28, 2029.Case Details and Profile of 65-Year-Old Dalian Falun Gong Practitioner Ms. Yu Chunxiang, Sentenced to Four Years
On July 27, 2026, the Rights Defense Network Information Center reported that Yu Chunxiang, a 65-year-old Falun Gong practitioner from Dalian, Liaoning Province, was sentenced to four years in prison. Police arrested her on March 4 after raiding her home, and she was held at Yaojia Detention Center. The Ganjingzi District Procuratorate prosecuted her on May 12, and the district court sentenced her on July 23.Case Details and Profile of Qiao Keqiong, a Falun Gong Practitioner from Zigui County, Yichang City, Hubei Province, Sentenced to 10 Years
On July 27, 2026, the Rights Defense Network Information Center reported that Qiao Keqiong, a male Falun Gong practitioner from Zigui County, Yichang City, Hubei Province, was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2017 after being arrested by Zigui County Public Security Bureau and domestic security police. He is detained in the First Ward of Fanjiatai Prison in Shayang. The report says he is severely malnourished, with deformed fingers and missing teeth. His sentence ends in December 2027.The Haimen District Public Security Bureau of Nantong City, Jiangsu Province, deemed Xu Jian’s petition registration in Beijing to constitute disruption of order at a work unit and imposed an eight-day administrative detention penalty
On July 23, 2026, the Haimen District Public Security Bureau of Nantong City sentenced Xu Jian to eight days of administrative detention, saying visits and registrations at the Ministry of Public Security, Supreme People’s Court and National Public Complaints and Proposals Administration on April 27, April 28 and June 30 had disrupted work-unit order. His wife, Zhu Peijuan, called the penalty retaliation and said the visits were lawful.Wang Zang: Several Opinions Addressed to the Guannan Local Government Regarding the “Drowning Incident” of His Nephew Wang Hao
Wang Yuwen, also known as Wang Zang, says his two-year-old nephew, Wang Hao, died in a river near his home in Sanhe Village, Guannan County, Jiangsu, on March 12, 2023. In a July 27, 2026 petition, he questions the surveillance footage and cause of death, alleges improper burial and exhumation by village officials, seeks reinvestigation, accountability and compensation, and says the family will pursue further complaints and publicity.Case Details and Profile of Ms. Li Guizhen, a Shandong Jinan Falun Gong Practitioner Sentenced to 3 Years
Li Guizhen, a Falun Gong practitioner from Jinan, Shandong, was born in 1951 and is a retired power company employee. She was previously sentenced to four and a half years in March 2010. Police arrested her and more than 40 other practitioners on September 29, 2025. Tried around early April 2026, she was sentenced to three years in May and transferred to Shandong Women’s Prison, with her sentence ending September 28, 2028.Case Details and Biography of Shandong Jinan Falun Gong Practitioner Wang Housheng, Sentenced to 3 Years
The report said Wang Housheng, a Falun Gong practitioner from Jinan, Shandong, was born in 1960 and is a retired employee of Jinan Dazhong Daily. It said he underwent reeducation through labor in 2000 and 2005. Wang was arrested with more than 40 practitioners on September 29, 2025, and sentenced to three years. He was transferred to a Shandong prison on May 20, 2026, with his sentence set to expire on September 28, 2028.The Chinese Communist Party in Wuxi Deprives Human Rights Defender Shen Aibin of His Right to File a Criminal Appeal Through Blatant Abuse of Power
The Rights Defense Network Information Center reported that Wuxi human rights defender Shen Aibin mailed a criminal appeal to the Wuxi Municipal People’s Procuratorate on February 22, 2026, received February 23, after his appeal was rejected. As of July 25, the report said he had received no procedural notification or review conclusion, exceeding statutory deadlines. Shen’s petition challenges convictions in cases (2022) Su 0213 Criminal First Instance No. 873 and (2023) Su 02 Criminal Final No. 338.Update on the Yayang Church Case in Taishun County, Wenzhou, Zhejiang
The Rights Defense Network Information Center reported that at least 20 Christians were detained in Taishun County, Wenzhou, over opposition to cross demolitions, petitions and the forced installation of national flags. They face charges including disrupting social order, provoking trouble, obstructing official duties, forced transactions, and concealing or destroying accounting books. Their legally approved church was demolished in May 2026, and a lawyer was beaten before an administrative hearing.Feng Zhenghu: Sixth Review of China’s Petition System — A Silent Petition Office, a Paralyzed Avenue of Relief
On June 11, 2026, the Shanghai Petition Office received an 88-page submission from Feng Zhenghu requesting hierarchical supervision under Article 35 of China’s Administrative Reconsideration Law over the Shanghai Municipal Justice Bureau’s alleged failure to act. The article says no written notification was issued within the 15-day statutory period. Feng sent a demand letter on July 10 and outlined possible complaints, accountability requests and administrative litigation.The Case of Hu Yang, a Henan Native and International Student at Leiden University in the Netherlands Who Was Arrested, Went to Trial Recently; No Verdict Issued in Court
Hu Yang, a Henan native and Leiden University graduate, was detained by Zhengzhou police after returning to China from the Netherlands with former schoolmate Wu Haoyu on July 26, 2025. Both were accused of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” and Hu was formally arrested on September 3. His first-instance trial was recently held at Zhengzhou’s Erqi District People’s Court, with no verdict issued. He remains detained.Rights-Protection Commentary: Good Laws Should Protect the Upright! The Revision of the Lawyers Law Must Not Leave Only Restraints
Special Commentator Liang Xin says the proposed amendment to China’s Law on Lawyers would expand criminal legal aid, establish full coverage of lawyer defence and strengthen safeguards for lawyers’ practice rights, while increasing penalties for fraudulent litigation and other misconduct. However, the draft allegedly leaves unresolved longstanding risks for criminal defence lawyers, including vague boundaries around independent defence, insufficient immunity for lawful statements and excessive enforcement discretion, potentially weakening defendants’ rights.Li Qiaochu: Where has the procedure for Xu Zhiyong and me to apply for marriage reached? The Shandong Provincial Government rejected my administrative reconsideration
On July 15, 2026, the Shandong Provincial Government rejected the administrative reconsideration application concerning the Shandong Provincial Prison Administration’s failure to process Xu Zhiyong and the author’s marriage application. Authorities classified the matter as prisoner education and management within criminal-sentence execution, outside administrative reconsideration. The author disputes this classification, arguing marriage is a protected civil right and criticizing the decision’s handling of evidence, procedures and delivery.Rights-Defense Commentary: Tolerance Exists Only in the Halls of Power, Accountability Is Directed Only at the People—Disaster Public-Opinion Governance Must Eliminate “Double Standards”
On July 23, 2026, the Cyberspace Administration of China and Ministry of Emergency Management launched a campaign targeting illegal and harmful disaster-related information, including AI fabrications, fake videos and fraud. The article argues that implementation may unfairly punish ordinary users for unintentional errors while tolerating or concealing distorted official data. It calls for distinguishing deliberate misinformation from mistakes, protecting public oversight and holding officials accountable for falsification or concealment.Case Details and Profile of Ms. Gu Hongying, a Falun Gong Practitioner from the Liaocheng Economic Development Zone in Shandong Province, Sentenced to 4 Years
On July 24, 2026, the Rights Defense Network Information Center reported details about Gu Hongying, a Falun Gong practitioner from Liaocheng Economic Development Zone, Shandong Province. Police arrested her at home on November 4, 2025, and transferred her to Liaocheng’s Liangshuizhen Detention Center on November 6. Tried at Dongchangfu District Court on June 17, 2026, she was sentenced to four years in prison and fined 4,000 yuan.Agents in the Duan Hua case Wen Donghai and Wang Ligan forcibly summoned by officers from the Lingui Police Station of the Lingui Branch of the Guilin Public Security Bureau
On July 22, 2026, legal professionals Wen Donghai and Wang Liqian, also identified as Wang Ligan, submitted complaint materials to the Guilin Municipal Commission of Supervision concerning alleged disciplinary and legal violations by Lingui District Court officials Huang Wenqing and Nie Huayu. After staff refused to accept the materials, a dispute lasted nearly three hours. Police then forcibly summoned both men to the Lingui Police Station; they were later released.Famous Henan essayist Min Liangchen, sentenced to 3 years for his speech, transferred to Henan No. 2 Prison in Xinxiang, Henan Province
On July 24, 2026, the Rights Defense Network Information Center reported that Henan essayist Min Liangchen had been transferred from Zhengzhou No. 3 Detention Center to Henan No. 2 Prison in Xinxiang to serve a three-year sentence. Arrested in April 2024, he was accused of publishing 290 articles overseas and “picking quarrels and provoking trouble.” The Zhongyuan District Court sentenced him in January 2026; his sentence runs until April 2027.84-Year-Old Falun Gong Practitioner Liu Huiju of Shuangyashan, Heilongjiang, Dies Nine Months After Being forcibly Imprisoned
According to a Rights Defense Network Information Center report, Liu Huiju, an 83-year-old Falun Gong practitioner from Shuangyashan, Heilongjiang Province, was taken into custody on July 31, 2025, after police removed her from her home and transported her to a hospital. She was transferred to Heilongjiang Women’s Prison and received emergency hospital treatment four times. Liu died in prison on May 7, 2026, aged 84.Haimen, Nantong petitioner Xu Jian detained by Sanxing Town Police Station after returning from Beijing
On July 22, 2026, the Rights Defense Network Information Center reported that Haimen, Nantong petitioner Xu Jian was taken to Sanxing Town Police Station after returning from Beijing with his wife, Zhu Peijuan. Zhu said police used a private vehicle and presented no legal documents, and that Xu was held for allegedly “disturbing the order of a work unit.” She accused local officials of abuse and retaliation.Henan human rights defender Li Xin’s appeal in his case involving the crimes of picking quarrels and provoking trouble and bigamy rejected
On July 23, 2026, the Information Center of Civil Rights and Livelihood Watch reported that Henan human rights defender Li Xin’s appeal was rejected in a case involving picking quarrels and provoking trouble and bigamy. Li appealed his five-year sentence, arguing that authorities criminalized his efforts to seek treatment and assistance for his daughter after vaccination-related illness, violated his defense and hearing rights, and improperly prosecuted the bigamy charge.
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