News from China - 08/15/2000

[Chongqing] Isn't that Life in prison? --- Report from Xishanping Labor Camp

The Xishanping Labor Camp is detaining over 40 Falun Gong practitioners. Now, the family members of practitioners are not allowed to visit them any more. When some family members asked the staff members of the labor camp why they were not allowed to visit their loved ones, the staff members replied: "You can visit them only after they have been transformed. If they refuse to recant, they will not be freed even after they finish serving their terms, not to mention to be visited. If they do not change for the rest of their lives, they will be detained for the rest of their lives. They will never get out of the labor camp." The family members asked angrily: "Isn't that a sentence of life in prison? Who made this rule?" The staff members said: "It is the order from higher authorities."

According to the inmates of practitioners in the labor camp, the detained practitioners started group practice of Falun Gong exercises on August 10, 2000. Since then, the police brutality has not stopped. The police cuffed and hang up those who they believed to be leaders under the baking sun, including a professor from Chongqing University. Some practitioners have started a hunger strike.

According to an inmate, in July, the wife of a detained practitioner brought a book "Zhuan Falun" and attempted to give the book to her husband while visiting him. But the police noticed that, and immediately arrested her and sent her to the Majiashan Women Labor Camp without going through any legal procedures. The inmates present all felt that it was too vicious.

An inmate consoled the family members of the practitioners: "We all know that Falun Gong practitioners are good people. You are also good people. So please do not worry. Except the police, nobody has beaten them. We are all very clear in our hearts. Please take good care of yourselves." The family members of practitioners thanked them and left the Labor Camp sadly. [Editor's note: the Chinese police often ordered inmates to beat practitioners in detention centers and labor camps.]

[Beijing] Practitioners from Chinese Academy of Science, Kong Fanfen and Mo Haitao, sentenced with forced labor without trials

Ms. Kong Fanfen, 60, was a researcher of the Institute of Chemistry and Metallurgy of the Chinese Academy of Science. On July 25, 2000, the police took her to the Bureau 14 for interrogation. After that, they detained her in the Paoju Detention Center. During her detention, Ms. Kong staged a hunger strike to protest the injustice against her. She became very weak, and her head, legs, and arms were trembling. Medical exams of various health indicators showed that she was in very bad condition. At the beginning of August, Ms. Kong's mother passed away. So her husband was allowed to pick her up from the detention center to attend the funeral of her mother. After that, she was hospitalized. Her husband took the results of the medical exams to the Bureau 14, pointing out that she should not be further detained given her health condition. But instead of being freed, Ms. Kong was sentenced to one year of forced labor. Thus this old lady in her 60s was forcefully taken away from the hospital and thrown into the labor camp.

Mr. Mo Haitao, a graduate student from the Institute of Chemistry and Metallurgy of the Chinese Academy of Science, was arrested on July 3, 2000, and was given a sentence of one year of forced labor without trial. Mr. Mo's wife, Hui Yan, was sentenced to one and a half years of forced labor for unfurling banner on Tiananmen Square in mid July.

[Hebei] Severe violations of human rights of Falun Gong practitioners

The communist authorities in Yuanshi County of Hebei Province have been violating Falun Gong practitioners' human rights since July 20, 1999. Practitioners were often arrested for no reason. Some practitioners have been arrested six or seven times. They were detained in the County Detention Center, and were forced to write pledges and pay stiff fines. More than twenty practitioners were arrested at the beginning of this March. Among them, Yan Zhilan has been in custody for almost half a year and is still being detained in the township government. On June 29, 2000, three practitioners were arrested at home without any legal papers. When they were sent to the detention center, the only explanation that the police offered them was that it was the order of the higher authorities. The three practitioners were detained for 19 days. The police also confiscated practitioners' personal properties such as TV and cassette players and imposed financial penalties at will, and claimed that there was no need to follow the law in dealing with Falun Gong practitioners.

[Mudanjiang] Practitioners sentenced with forced labor (continued from last report)

Ms. Wu Xiuhua, Ms. Xiang Aizheng, Ms. Wei Wenbin, Ms. Cui Yueping and Ms. Song Baoling were sentenced to one year of forced labor, and are being detained in the detention center of Qiqihar City of Heilongjiang Province. Ms. Wang Hongzhou was sentenced to two years of forced labor and is being detained in the same place.

Ms. Cheng Fengying, Ms. Zhang Fenrong, Ms. Wu Xiuyan, and Mr. Hou Guozhong were sentenced with forced labor, but the exact terms of their sentences are unknown. They are being detained in the Sidao Labor Camp of Mudanjiang City.

Mr. Wang Honglin, about 39 years old, was arrested for distributing materials on clarifying the facts of Falun Gong. When he was detained in the second detention center, the police tortured him cruelly in order to force him to disclose where he got the materials. Afterwards, Wang was sent to the Sidao Labor Camp to serve one year of forced labor.

[Guangdong]

The police sent several practitioners from Jiangmen City of Guangdong Province secretly to the Sanshui Labor Camp without notifying their family members and without going through any legal procedures. Although the communist regime claims that they are governing the country by law, it has not the slightest respect for law. To the communist authorities, the law is just a tool for persecuting the people, while they themselves are above the law.

[Jiangxi]

At the end of June, practitioners from Ganzhou City of Jiangxi Province, Long Bin (a college teacher) and Ms. Tan and another practitioner were arrested for sharing Teacher's new articles with fellow practitioners.

In late December last year, Yang Hai, the former contact person of Ganzhou City, Liang, Qiu, and another two practitioners were arrested for appealing and spreading the truth of Falun Gong. They were all sentenced, and are now being detained in Nanchang City. They are all determined about their faith.