(Clearwisdom.net) Falun Dafa practitioner Mr. Zhao Zhiyong from Zhaoyuan City, Shandong Province passed away from a stroke on February 11, 2004, due to the severe abuses he and his family members suffered under the persecution.
Also, Mr. Zhao's older daughter, Zhao Yuhong, was imprisoned in the Shandong Women's Prison for over three years. The tortures she suffered there led to her being unable to take care of herself. Recently, she has been in critical condition ever since the prison doctor injected her with unknown drugs. The drugs caused her health to deteriorate rapidly.
Mr. Zhao Zhiyong was 78 years old, from Zhaojia Village in Zhangxing Township, Zhaoyuan City in Shandong Province. Mr. Zhao started practicing Falun Gong in 1997. All the diseases he previously suffered from disappeared after he began practicing. His wife and two daughters also practiced Falun Gong. When the persecution against Falun Gong started in 1999, Mr. Zhao's home was illegally searched four times and the family was harassed many times. His two daughters were both imprisoned many times. The abuses of the persecution made Mr. Zhao live under tremendous stress until he suffered a stroke. He wished to see his daughters during his last days, yet the wish did not come true and he passed away on February 11, 2004.
Mr. Zhao's older daughter Zhao Yuhong went to Beijing several times to appeal for justice for Falun Gong. She was sent back each time and suffered brutal torture at police stations and detention centers. Ms. Zhao was later sentenced to forced labor and sent to the Shandong Province Women's Prison. In the prison, Ms. Zhao suffered inhuman tortures and mental abuse. The torture handicapped the thumbs and index fingers of both hands, making her lose the ability to take care of herself. The mental abuse made her lose sleep for a long period of time. Repeated requests by her family members to have her released were all rejected.
Witnesses said that the brutal tortures Zhao Yuhong suffered disabled her. If she was lying down, she could not talk, drink or eat. The only way for her to talk or eat was while walking with unsteady steps. Yet, she persisted in practicing the Falun Gong exercises. The guards instructed criminal inmates to monitor Ms. Zhao, torture her, and verbally and mentally abuse her. One night in the spring of 2004, five or six inmates tortured Zhao Yuhong continuously for over two hours under the direction of the Sixth Prison Ward head. The guards injected the mentally healthy Zhao Yuhong with drugs that are only used in the treatment of mental patients; they often gave her injections that affected the central nervous system.
On March 8, 2005, Mr. Zhao Zhiyong's wife went visit her oldest daughter. She noticed that her daughter could only walk with others' help. Zhao Yuhong looked pale, dull and extremely weak. The mother felt very bad to see her daughter in this condition. She learned that the prison authorities had recently escalated the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. In addition to mental abuse, Ms. Zhao was injected with unknown drugs that left her unable to walk. This was done in order to stop her from practicing the exercises. The injections made Ms. Zhao's health deteriorate rapidly and brought about her critical condition.
