Beijing - A total of 37 Falun Gong followers have been jailed for terms ranging from three to 10 years for downloading and distributing material from the spiritual group's websites, Miriam Donohoe reports
The sentences were handed down in various districts of Beijing on Thursday. Most were convicted of "using a cult to obstruct the law" by spreading Falun Gong statements opposing the ban on the group. One follower, Xue Hairong, got seven years in prison for turning his rented home in Beijing into a small printing factory and producing leaflets from Falun Gong websites.
China claims that Falun Gong is an "evil cult" and has detained thousands of followers since it outlawed the group in July 1999. Recently the group distributed fliers in mailboxes and on streets criticising the government for neglecting poverty and unemployment and disputing the account of the attempted suicide of five members on Tiananmen Square on January 23rd.