(Linfen, Shanxi Province – August 7, 2024) On July 30, 2024, Li Shanshan, Chen Ying, and Wen Huijuan, the wives of Preacher Li Jie, Preacher Han Xiaodong, and Brother Wang Qiang from Linfen Covenant House Church, visited the Yaodu District Court for the fifth time. They requested to meet with Court President Xie Binghua and finally succeeded. President Xie sat in the courtroom to communicate with the three wives, refusing to acknowledge the illegality of the extended detention without trial of the three Christians. He also warned the wives not to criticize, comment on, or interfere with the case on Weibo. Outside the court, the three wives held up signs reading “Long detention without decision, complete inaction”, “Freedom of belief, Christian offerings are not fraud”, and “Release Li Jie, Han Xiaodong, Wang Qiang”. The wives stated that they would continue to fight for justice for their husbands until they are released.
Preachers Li Jie and Han Xiaodong were detained on August 19, 2022, on suspicion of “fraud”. On November 1 of the same year, Brother Wang Qiang was also detained on the same charge. Nearly two years have passed, and the court has neither held a trial nor provided any explanation for the case. Recently, the wives of the three Christians made four consecutive visits to the Yaodu District Court to request a meeting with Court President Xie Binghua, but were told each time that he was unavailable.
The first visit was on July 3, when Li Shanshan and Chen Ying went to the Yaodu District Court to request a meeting and were told: “President Xie is on a business trip and will be away for a week.”
The second visit was on July 5, when the lawyer submitted another application to change the compulsory measures to the court but received no response. Wen Huijuan called the court to inquire about when President Xie would meet them, and the court replied: “It’s not a legal procedure for President Xie to meet with the defendants’ families. President Xie hasn’t given a response about whether to meet or not, so you should wait for news.”
The third visit was on July 23, when Li Shanshan, Chen Ying, and Wen Huijuan went to the Yaodu District Court together to request a meeting with President Xie Binghua to explain the injustice of the case. The three wives entered the court’s lobby at 8:25 AM and called President Xie Binghua’s office, but no one answered. They also called Judge Jia Jing’s office, with no response. Later, the three wives were called to the office by staff from the court’s petition office. The wives expressed their request to meet President Xie and asked for a clear response immediately on whether he would meet them or not.
The clerk said that President Xie is in a meeting. The wives were determined and were willing to wait. The clerk clarified. “President Xie will be in meetings all day.”
The wives promised to come back tomorrow. In response, the clerk said, “President Xie will be in meetings for a week.”
The fourth visit was on July 29. It was raining moderately that day, and the three wives braved the rain to come to the Yaodu District Court again to request a meeting with President Xie. They were once again told that he was out for training. The three wives returned without any progress again.
On July 30, 2024, it was raining heavily in Linfen. The three wives came to the Yaodu District Court for the fifth time, requesting to meet with President Xie Binghua. This time, they finally met him.
The wives originally thought President Xie would sit at a table with them to talk, but unexpectedly, he arranged to receive them in a courtroom. The atmosphere in the courtroom was solemn. President Xie sat in the judge’s position, while the three wives were arranged to sit in the last row of the public gallery, about 5 meters away from him. Due to the distance and President Xie’s elevated position, the three wives had to tilt their heads upward and speak loudly to state their case.
President Xie asked, “You’ve come to see me repeatedly, what’s the matter? I know every time you come to court.”
The three wives responded, “We are Christians, and Christian offerings are a 2000-year-old tradition. Offerings cannot be considered fraud. This is clearly persecution of our faith; don’t label us with the crime of fraud. We have opportunities to earn a lot of money; we don’t need to commit fraud. Our husbands are innocent, which is why we’ve come to court multiple times regardless of weather conditions, to appeal for our husbands. If they are guilty, we accept legal sanctions. But they are innocent, so please release them to reunite with us. The Yaodu District Court’s failure to hold a trial, extended detention, and long-term detention without decision are illegal.”
“I understand your feelings very well and empathize with you,” he responded. “I’m really busy, indeed in meetings, on business trips, and in training. It’s legal not to meet with family members. If we were to meet with family members for every case, it would be impossible.”
Then, President Xie seriously informed the three wives not to criticize, comment on, or interfere with the case on Weibo.
The wives asked, “Our case has been going on for two years. Isn’t it illegal to neither try nor judge and keep delaying?”
President Xie retaliated, “Go look at the Criminal Procedure Law. We handle cases according to procedures.”
The wives asked again, “Extensions should come with notification letters to the lawyers, but our lawyers haven’t received any.”
President Xie answered, “We are following procedures. This is the best era, and we will definitely handle your case fairly and justly.”
The women persisted, “When will the case go to trial? How long do we have to wait for this process?”
President Xie said, “The case is still in process. Continue to wait for news, and don’t interfere with the case on Weibo.”
Throughout the conversation, President Xie did not focus on justice, fair trial, or show concern for the wives’ hardships. He was more concerned about the wives not posting on Weibo anymore.
After meeting with President Xie, the three wives felt very sad. All their questions and requests were answered with that it’s in process and to wait for news.
After leaving the court, the three wives went to the Linfen Intermediate People’s Court to report the injustice; in the afternoon, they also went to the Municipal Party Committee’s Petition Office and the Standing Committee of the People’s Congress to report the injustice.
In June, President Xie went to the detention center to interrogate Li Jie, Han Xiaodong, and Wang Qiang, asking the three brothers to plead guilty and accept punishment. The three brothers stated that they would absolutely not plead guilty or accept punishment. The three wives stated that as long as Li Jie, Xiaodong, and Wang Qiang are not released, they will continue to fight for justice for their husbands.
