Sun Qingju (孙庆菊), a retired kindergarten teacher from Helong City in Jilin Province, is serving a four-and-a-half-year prison sentence for practicing Falun Gong, according to Minghui.org. Her sentence followed a dispute with the local social security bureau over the suspension of her pension, which had been frozen because of an earlier four-year prison term served for her faith.
Background
Sun began practicing Falun Gong in the late 1990s. Minghui reports that she had previously served a four-year prison term from May 2012 to May 2016. In November 2021, the Helong City Social Security Bureau ordered her to repay 150,000 yuan in pension benefits received during those four years and suspended her pension. She appealed the decision and refused to repay.
Second arrest and sentence
Sun was detained by Bajiazi Town police on April 8, 2022 and released the same night, according to Minghui. She was detained again on August 29, 2022, released the next day, then taken back into custody on August 31. She was held at the Dunhua City Detention Center before transfer to the Yanji City Detention Center. The Longjing City Procuratorate indicted her, and the Longjing City Court sentenced her to four and a half years in prison.
Reported treatment in prison
In 2025, Minghui reported that Sun was held in Cell 107 of the 8th Division at Jilin Province Women’s Prison in Changchun. The outlet reported allegations of pepper-spraying, shackling, denial of water and other mistreatment. These claims are source-attributed and have not been independently verified.
Status
The latest reports located, dated September and December 2025, place Sun Qingju in Jilin Province Women’s Prison. No specific release date is asserted here, and no official court judgment or PRC government document was located.
Media archive: Sun Qingju (孙庆菊) — Media Archive