On June 25, 2024, a Christian named Li Yunhong (pseudonym, aged 60 at the time) was arrested by the Chinese police for her faith in God. She was later sentenced by a local court to three years and six months in prison. Because she was seriously ill, she was granted medical parole, with one and a half years remaining on her sentence. During her medical parole, her breast cancer progressed to an advanced stage and spread to her bones. On April 24, 2026, the police deceived Li into leaving her home under the pretext of taking her to the hospital for medical treatment, then took her into custody at Qingdao No. 2 Detention Center. On May 20, Li was transferred to Shandong Women’s Prison, where she was forced to serve the remaining one and a half years of her sentence.
On June 25, 2024, several plainclothes officers from the Beiguan Police Station of the Jiaozhou Municipal Public Security Bureau broke into the home of Li Yunhong’s mother and conducted a search. They confiscated computers, network cards, 24 memory cards, and other items. Li was subsequently taken to Qingdao No. 2 Detention Center for interrogation. The police repeatedly pressured her to identify other Christians, but she consistently refused and did not betray anyone.
On June 27, Li was sent back to Qingdao No. 2 Detention Center. During her intake medical examination, she clearly told the police and doctors that she had a soybean-sized lump in her breast, but the police ignored her. During her detention, detention-center police ignored her requests for medical treatment and required her to sit cross-legged on a wooden bed board throughout the day. They also forced her to watch patriotic films as part of an effort to brainwash her. Beginning in October, Li developed severe dizziness, numerous sores in her mouth, high fever, and other symptoms. The detention center provided only a small number of pills as a makeshift treatment, while a doctor even mocked and ridiculed her. By mid-to-late November, the lump in Li’s breast had grown to about the size of a peanut and had repeatedly broken through the skin, ulcerated, and bled. It was only after detention-center police became concerned that they might be held accountable that they bandaged the wound and applied for additional nutritional support for her. At the end of November, examinations at two hospitals in Shandong’s Qingdao City diagnosed Li with a malignant breast tumor (invasive carcinoma).
In addition, the detention center, working with the procuratorate, repeatedly pressured and threatened Li to write the Statement of Remorse and Statement of Guarantee. They also used her children to put additional pressure on her, attempting to force her to abandon her faith. On December 17, 2024, as Li’s condition worsened, the police became concerned that they would be held accountable if she died in custody and finally agreed to arrange medical parole for her.
During her medical parole, Li’s condition deteriorated rapidly, and the cancer spread to her liver and bones. Because surgery was not possible, she could only rely on expensive chemotherapy medications to maintain treatment. She also developed severe allergic reactions and a dangerously low white blood cell count, among other complications. Frequent hospitalizations and the high cost of medications not covered by insurance exhausted Li’s family’s savings and also caused tension within the family.
On June 25, 2025, a local court collectively sentenced Li and 17 other Christians. Because Li had served as a church leader, the court sentenced her to three years and six months in prison and fined her RMB 12,000 (approximately USD 1,800).
While the court was processing the paperwork for Li’s medical parole, a judge claimed that her medical documentation was insufficient and required her to meet conditions including “two hospitalizations per year, with each hospitalization lasting at least seven days.” The judge even threatened to revoke her medical parole and return her to custody if the documentation was incomplete. To meet the court’s requirements, Li was forced to be hospitalized again in July 2025 for a comprehensive medical examination. The hospitalization was not only costly but also placed an additional physical burden on Li, who was suffering from advanced breast cancer.
Although Li’s family cooperated in completing all the requirements imposed by the court, the police ultimately deceived Li into leaving her home on April 24, 2026, under the pretext of taking her to the hospital for medical treatment. They then took her back into custody at Qingdao No. 2 Detention Center. On May 20, 2026, Li was transferred to Shandong Women’s Prison again and required to serve the remaining one and a half years of her sentence.
