Xi’an Church Worker Fu Juan Serving Three-and-a-Half-Year Sentence
An October report provided details of the three-and-a-half-year sentence imposed on Fu Juan (付娟), a preacher and worker at Xi’an’s Fengsheng Church (丰盛教会), for fraud. Her conviction by Xi’an’s Baqiao District People’s Court became known in August 2026, although the sentencing date remains unclear. She is reportedly held at Shaanxi Women’s Prison, with her sentence scheduled to end on December 5, 2026. Her health reportedly deteriorated during detention.
Fu handled donation records, accounts, and administrative work for the church. She was detained in August 2022 alongside pastors Lian Changnian (廉长年) and Lian Xuliang (廉旭亮) and spent approximately six months under residential surveillance at a designated location, where she reportedly suffered torture. Authorities banned the church shortly after their detention. Prosecutors subsequently brought a fraud case involving RMB 390,000. The three were released on bail in April 2025 but taken back into custody in November that year.
Li Yuanfeng Defends Free Expression at Subversion Trial
An October update was issued marking two years since Hunan independent journalist and rights defender Li Yuanfeng (李原风) was detained. It reported that Li defended his articles and online comments in court as freedom of expression. Li was tried on a charge of “inciting subversion of state power” at Yiyang Intermediate People’s Court on August 13, 2026. No verdict was announced at the hearing, and the October update did not report an outcome.
Li, originally named Li Weizhong (李维忠), has long reported on labor rights and social injustice. Police took him away on October 10, 2024, initially placing him under administrative detention. He was subsequently placed in criminal detention on suspicion of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble.” On November 13, 2024, authorities changed the suspected offense to inciting subversion and placed him under residential surveillance at a designated location.
Zhang Chao Sentenced After June Fourth Memorial Post
Shandong rights activist Zhang Chao (张超) has reportedly been sentenced to one year and two months in prison for “picking quarrels and provoking trouble. His trial took place at Zaozhuang’s Shanting District People’s Court on September 23, 2026, after the presiding judge reportedly excluded members of the public who had arrived to observe. The sentencing date remains unclear. He is reportedly held at Zaozhuang No. 1 Detention Center, with his sentence scheduled to end on August 4, 2027.
On June 4, 2026, Zhang photographed the area outside the railings surrounding Tiananmen Square and shared the pictures with a commemorative poem on WeChat Moments. Zaozhuang state security officers took him from Beijing in the early hours of June 5. He was placed in criminal detention the following day and formally arrested on June 18. Zhang, a Buddhist monk also known as Shi Daoguo (释道果), has long promoted democratic ideas online and assisted fellow activists. He was previously detained in 2014 and 2019.
Jia Pin’s Judgment Details Four-Year Sentence for Facebook and Twitter Posts
A judgment published in October details the four-year prison sentence imposed on Henan rights defender Jia Pin (贾榀)for posts on Facebook and Twitter. Nanyang’s Wolong District People’s Court sentenced him on September 8, 2023, for “picking quarrels and provoking trouble.” The court characterized information he posted between 2014 and July 2022 as false and asserted that it caused serious disruption to public order. Jia acknowledged posting the material but disputed its characterization and denied committing the offense. The judgment did not identify specific posts or explain what disruption they caused.
Police from Nanyang detained Jia in Beihai, Guangxi, on September 22, 2022, and returned him to Henan. He reportedly completed his sentence and was released from Yuxi Prison on September 21, 2026.
Liang Qin Completes Ten-Year Sentence in Yunnan Church Case
Liang Qin (梁琴) was reportedly released on October 20, 2026, after completing a ten-year prison sentence. She had served her term at Yunnan No. 1 Women’s Prison following her conviction for “organizing and using a cult to undermine implementation of the law” in a case involving alleged links to the Three Grades of Servants (三班仆人派), a Christian doomsday sect.
Liang, an assistant to preacher Ju Dianhong (鞠殿红), was among dozens of Christians detained in Yunnan’s Yun County on October 21, 2016. Authorities accused the group of holding secret gatherings, preaching, recruiting followers, and rebuilding the Three Grades of Servants’ organizational network. On December 28, 2017, the Yun County People’s Court sentenced six defendants, giving Liang ten years and a RMB 100,000 fine and Ju thirteen years. Liang’s sentence was upheld on appeal. She maintained that her faith was not criminal and rejected its characterization as a cult.
Labor Rights Advocate Feng Rui Released on Bail
Labor rights advocate Feng Rui (冯睿), known online as “Xiao Wu” (小五), was released on bail and returned to his hometown on October 21, 2026, according to information from his lawyer. Guangzhou’s Yuexiu District police had detained him on September 14 on suspicion of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble.” He was held at Yuexiu District Detention Center. His release on bail does not mean the case has been closed.
Feng operates the WeChat account “Chiapas Dongfeng TV” (恰帕斯东风电视机), which covers the rights of delivery riders, office workers, and migrant workers. He has published annual reviews of labor rights incidents for several years. His detention may be linked to the account’s review of events in 2025, which was deleted. The account stopped updating on September 14. A 2017 graduate of Beijing Normal University’s Chinese department, Feng previously worked at Beijing Workers’ Home and the 706 Youth Space.
Former Ragya Abbot Receives Five-Year Sentence After Monastery Raid
Tenpa Gyatso (丹巴嘉措), also known as Lobsang Tenpa (洛桑丹巴), a former abbot of Ragya Monastery (拉加寺) in Qinghai’s Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, was reportedly sentenced to five years in prison around October 5, 2026. He was subsequently transferred to Xichuan Prison in Xining, according to Tibetan sources. The charge and sentencing court remain unknown, as does whether he had legal representation or his family was notified.
Police detained him in August after searching his monastic quarters and reportedly finding photographs of the Dalai Lama and the monastery’s head lama, Shingza Rinpoche, alongside a USB drive containing the Dalai Lama’s teachings. He had previously been detained for several months in 2025 after encouraging local residents to recite long-life prayers for the Dalai Lama’s ninetieth birthday. Born in 1965, he served as Ragya Monastery’s abbot from 2000 to 2005.