Practitioners are arrested with great brutality.

The ill Mr. Shaotai is given a long sentence. The main "evidence" presented by the prosecutor is a Shen Yun DVD.

Police Torture Falun Gong Practitioners in Wangcheng County, Hunan Province (Photo) 

Five Falun Gong practitioners, including Liu Peilan and Li Zhigang, were arrested by Qiaoyi Police Station in Wangcheng County, Hunan Province on the evening of April 17, 2010. In order to coerce confessions from them, three of them were tortured for several hours by the officers from the station and the county police department. One practitioner is still currently detained at Wangcheng County Detention Center. The police have forbidden his family members to visit him, and unlawfully ransacked his home.

At around 10:00 p.m. that evening, three police officers from Qiaoyi Police Station arrested two male practitioners. The police severely beat the practitioners, squeezed their throats, twisted their hands, batted at the practitioners' faces and kicked their legs. One practitioner's leg was beaten so severely that it bled continuously and copiously and the blood even flowed out of his woolen long johns.

Photo taken of the practitioner's leg, six days after the practitioner was beaten by Tang Wei. The wound did not heal well, leaving a large bump.

The two practitioners were shoved into the back of the police car with their hands cuffed. Later, three other practitioners were arrested and shoved into the police car while they were walking by Qiaoyi Police Station. Ms. Liu Peilan, one of those three practitioners is 70 years old.

At Qiaoyi Police Station, several officers continued to severely beat three male practitioners by slapping their faces, kicking and continuously beating their bodies and heads with three-centimeter-thick wooden sticks. One officer used the stick to beat practitioners' necks, and the backs and tops of their heads. He struck the practitioners with so much force that the stick was split into two pieces.

Another police officer lifted a practitioner up by grabbing his collar bone with both hands, and shined a special high beam flashlight in his eyes. In addition, that police officer slapped the practitioner's face, harshly kicked him, and tightly handcuffed him so hard that the circulation in his hands was cut off. Handcuffing people like this for a long period can lead to one's hands becoming disabled or even necrotic.

Another male practitioner was subjected to continuous torture for seven to eight hours from around 10:00 p.m. that night to the morning of the following day by Tang Wei, head of the Domestic Security Team of Wangcheng County Police Department. His hands were cuffed tightly the entire time. But Tang Wei sometimes lifted the handcuffs, which caused the practitioner burning pain, causing him to scream several times. In addition, the practitioner's leg was beaten, causing a large bump due to the severe kicking Tang Wei administered with his leather shoes. Moreover, Tang Wei used one hand to pull the practitioner's hair and used his other hand to punch the bridge of his nose. The whole time he tortured the practitioner, Tang Wei threatened him, "I want to cause you internal wounds, the kind that can't be cured by any medicine!"

Hu Xin, deputy head of the Domestic Security Team rolled up newspapers and then severely lashed a practitioner' eyes with them. The practitioner's eyes were beaten so severely the skin around them turned black and it was extremely painful.

Liu Peilan and Li Zhigang were transferred and detained at Wangcheng County Detention Center on the evening of April 18. Li Zhigang's home was ransacked on April 21. Right now, Li Zhigang is held at Wangcheng County Detention Center; his family members are forbidden to visit him.

Li Zhigang, 41, earned his Ph.D. in computer science at the National University of Defense Technology located at Changsha City in Hunan Province. He has been detained at the military prison under the Political Department of Guangzhou Military Region, the Detention Center of Beijing Military Region, Chenzhou Military Prison and Jinshi Prison in Hunan Province for more than six years.

Mr. Dong Shaotai, Almost Seventy, Sentenced to Seven-Year Prison Term (Photos) 

At 10:00 a.m. on April 13, 2010, Mr. Dong Shaotai, a 68-year-old practitioner who had been detained for more than six months, was tried in Shuangliu County Court in Sichuan Province. Two human rights lawyers from Beijing overcame many difficulties to valiantly defend their client.

In the end, the court sentenced Mr. Dong, who had been persecuted almost to death, to seven years in prison. In reality the outcome had been decided long before the trial by the local CCP Political and Judiciary Committee.

That day, uniformed and plainclothes police and their vehicles could be seen up and down Shuncheng Street, where the court was located. The atmosphere was very tense. The County Court staff refused entry to all visitors. Anyone who arrived for business was told to come back the next day. The security guards and the court police officers at the entrance said, "The police have imposed restrictions on who can enter the building because a special case is in progress."

Police cars outside the court

A police vehicle taking Mr. Dong Shaotai from the court, followed by an ambulance

Police monitor the street where the court is located

The Supreme Court of China clearly stated that lawyers and prosecutors are exempt from inspections when they appear in court. However, the court insisted on searching Dong Shaotai's lawyers before allowing them to enter the courthouse. The lawyers argued strongly, but two court police officers searched the lawyers' briefcases again and again with the excuse of doing a security inspection. The lawyers were forced to pass through the security door three times. The police even ordered the lawyers to take off their shoes for inspection, claiming that they were emitting some noises.

Meanwhile, a person was freely videotaping the lawyers and events in the court. As the court had imposed entrance restrictions, only Mr. Dong Shaotai's wife and daughter were allowed to enter the court with the lawyers. When they finally made it into the courtroom, the seats designated for observers were fully occupied by officials.

Mr. Dong Shaotai is a retiree of Pipeline Coatings Company. Last September he was arrested and held in Shuangliu County Detention Center, where he showed symptoms of a heart attack and high blood pressure after he had been tortured.

About 15 days prior to the date of the court session, Mr. Dong's health started to deteriorate. His blood pressure skyrocketed to 200 mm Hg. He had difficulty breathing and symptoms of a heart attack. He couldn't walk without the assistance of others. His life was in danger. An ambulance and doctors were waiting outside while the court was in session because of his ill health. The guards in Shuangliu County Detention Center had been keeping him alive with daily injections of medication. Despite Mr. Dong's health problems, the police refused to release him.

The lawyers asked the court to make medical treatment a priority over the trial. During the trial, the lawyers mentioned Mr. Dong Shaotai's health problems and asked the court to consider sending Mr. Dong for medical treatment and continuing the trial later.

Lawyer's Defense

The prosecutor quoted the statements made by several so-called witnesses, which Mr. Dong Shaotai refuted. One defense lawyer immediately asked for the witnesses to appear in court, but the judge refused the request.

The lawyer said that the evidence presented by the prosecutor was neither legal nor relevant. For instance, in the Letter of Prosecution, it mentioned the 610 Office. However, what kind of agency is the 610 Office? It is not a legally recognized entity, so there is no legal basis for their testimony.

In the meantime, the lawyers pointed out that the prosecutor listed many pieces of evidence such as Shen Yun DVDs, pamphlets, and other materials, but none of these proved that any crime had occurred. They were irrelevant to the charges. For instance, a Shen Yun DVD, presented as a main piece of "evidence," contained a show of music and dancing. Which law had been broken there?

The lawyers asked permission to play the Shen Yun DVD in the court to show the content, but the judge refused the request.

The Chief Judge attempted to limit the amount of time the defense lawyers were allowed to speak by constantly hammering with his gavel. The two lawyers were interrupted several times and also tried to continue their statements several times. Eventually, they managed to finish their statements of defense, which was that it is absolutely inappropriate to charge Mr. Dong Shaotai based on Clause 300 of the Criminal Law because Mr. Dong hasn't contravened any laws.

The lawyers also pointed out that the prosecutor's charges against Mr. Dong Shaotai violate the Constitution of China. The charges profane universal values such as freedom of belief. Moreover, the evidence was false and illogical.