This archive preserves the reporting and source material documenting the case of Cheng Xiaobao (成孝宝), a Falun Gong practitioner from Xiangyang, Hubei Province, sentenced to twelve years in prison.
Case chronology
- 1957-07-28 — Born, Xiangyang (Xiangfan), Hubei (CHRD POC database).
- 1998 — Began practicing Falun Gong (CHRD POC database).
- 1999-07 onward — Repeatedly detained/imprisoned for continued practice; cumulative 5 years of sentences and re-education-through-labor (CHRD POC database).
- 2015-09-17 — Detained with other practitioners by local police; held in administrative detention facility; no further public information for years (CHRD POC database).
- 2024-07 — It emerges he was sentenced years earlier to 12 years; charge not reported (CHRD POC database).
- 2024-08-17 — CHRD case record last updated (CHRD POC database).
- 2026-08-31 — Listed as in custody, sentence category “12 years,” in Rights Defense Network Issue 131 (Issue 131 report).
Source material
- CHRD Prisoners of Conscience Database, entry poc_c_00478 (成孝宝 Cheng Xiaobao) — Full case record: personal details, 1998–2015 history, 12-year sentence, Shayang Fanjiatai Prison (Fifth Ward), reported abuse for refusing forced labor, release 2027.9; “other source” credited as minghui.org. Last updated 2024-08-17. https://tenchu.org/pocd/public/pocs/3766 — read in full by researcher.
- Rights Defense Network / 维权网, Monthly Report on Political Prisoners and Prisoners of Conscience, Issue 131 (2026-08-31) — Current-custody confirmation: listed in the “sentenced to 12 years” statistical group. (Mirror consulted: chinatruth.net mirror) — read in full by researcher.
Source provenance and grading
- CHRD Prisoners of Conscience Database: NGO-maintained structured database; the only source carrying the full case narrative. Dates, places, occupation, and sentence length are internally consistent; the record’s “other source” field credits Minghui, but no specific Minghui article URL is given, so the narrative’s ultimate sourcing cannot be independently click-verified beyond CHRD.
- Rights Defense Network Issue 131: Independent rights-monitoring network’s monthly census; corroborates the 12-year sentence category and current custody as of August 31, 2026. It does not carry a biography for this case.
- Net assessment: sentence length and current custody are corroborated by two independent monitoring sources; the biographical narrative (occupation, 1999–2015 history, prison conditions) rests on the CHRD record alone and is presented as such.
Conflicts and evidentiary limitations
- Sentence end date: the CHRD case narrative says the term runs to September 16, 2027; the CHRD record’s “release” field says 2027.9.17. One-day discrepancy, unresolved. Public copy states “September 2027” only.
- Offense of conviction: not publicly reported. CHRD lists the charge as “unknown.” Do not state a charge.
- Prison-conditions claims (denied rest, reduced food, prolonged standing, isolation): rest on the CHRD record alone; presented as reported claims.
- 2015–2024 information gap: the record states no outside information emerged between the 2015 detention and the 2024 disclosure; the sentencing date and court are not in the public record.
- No photograph, family statements, or official documents are publicly available for this case.
Person Profile: Cheng Xiaobao — the full case profile.