Classification: Falun Gong practitioner from Panzhihua, Sichuan; sentenced to five years in August 2025; reported serving at the Chengdu Women’s Prison.
Background
Yao Jiaxiu (姚佳秀) was born in December 1967 and is a native of Panzhihua City, Sichuan Province. According to Minghui.org, she took up Falun Gong in October 1995 and had previously served two prison terms totaling twelve years — three years in 2001 and nine years in 2006. She was released on February 23, 2014, and later lived away from home to avoid detention.
The 2025 case
In August 2019, police attempted to arrest Yao at her home in Xichang City while she was absent; her two sons were detained instead. Yao went into hiding and was placed on a wanted list. On September 20/21, 2024, police from the Jiangyang District Public Security Bureau in Luzhou City seized her from her rental home; she was transferred to the Xichang City Detention Center. Her case was submitted to the Xichang City Procuratorate on December 16, 2024, and she appeared in the Xichang City Court on April 29, 2025. The prosecution charged her under Article 300 of the Criminal Law; Yao’s lawyer contested the evidence, Minghui reported.
On August 1, 2025, the Xichang City Court sentenced Yao to five years in prison and a 20,000-yuan fine. She appealed, and the Liangshan Prefecture Intermediate Court upheld the verdict on August 25, 2025, without holding a hearing, according to Minghui and the World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong.
Current status
Yao was admitted to the 4th Division of the Chengdu Women’s Prison on September 22, 2025, Minghui reported. During a family visit on December 4, 2025, her family found she had lost her upper incisors and was suffering kidney, lung, and liver problems, according to Minghui. The Rights Defense Network’s monthly in-custody report for August 2026 lists her in its “sentenced to 5 years” group.
Sources: Minghui.org (May, August, September, and December 2025); Bitter Winter (August 2025); World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong (August 2025); Rights Defense Network (维权网), Issue 131 monthly in-custody report, August 31, 2026.
Media profile & archive: Yao Jiaxiu / 姚佳秀 — Media Profile & Archive