(Minghui.org) A simple country woman organized a petition letter in order to rescue her brother, who was unlawfully jailed for his belief in Falun Gong. She wanted to seek justice for her brother and put her mother and nephew at ease.
Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Wang Xiaodong was arrested by police officers in February 2012. His younger sister Wang Xiaomei began to appeal on his behalf. As a result, she was also arrested and taken to the Women’s Labor Camp in Hebei Province. Both brother and sister are practitioners from Zhouguantun Village, Fu Town, Botou City, Hebei Province.
Wang Xiaomei tortured for trying to rescue her brother
When Ms. Wang Xiaomei arrived at the labor camp, Niu Li, a female officer in charge of persecuting Falun Gong practitioners, took her to her office. Without a word, Niu slapped her face twice. Therefore, she was disoriented for a while due to this sudden attack. Niu then used a shoe and hit her face repeatedly, while shouting and cursing at the same time. After this abuse, Niu took Xiaomei to a room, where five collaborators began to try to brainwash her. They forced her to read materials, which slandered Falun Gong, and pressured her to write three statements to renounce Falun Gong. Xiaomei had to endure this brainwashing session for more than three weeks.
Xiaomei was visited by her daughter on July 26 and officers videotaped their tearful reunion. The next day, Niu told a collaborator, who was assigned to “transform” Xiaomei: “She must write the statement today, no matter what.”
Torture Demo: Electric Shocks
In the afternoon, officers Niu Li and Zhao Yuan took Xiaomei to their office, where they ordered her to say curse words against Falun Gong and write a criticism statement of Falun Gong and Master Li. When she refused to do this, Niu began to shock her mouth with a high voltage baton. She also hit her back, legs and arms with a steel bar, and whipped her face with a shoe. Xiaomei’s back, legs and arms were covered with dark bruises, her face was badly swollen, and her mouth was bleeding. She had trouble eating solid food for many days. One month later, her bruises were still visible.
The guards had no sympathy for Falun Gong practitioners. Anyone who refused to be “transformed” was subjected to torture methods, such as: standing through the entire night, having their labor camp sentence extended, being beaten and cursed at, solitary confinement, performing hard labor, restriction of toilet breaks, had unknown drugs added to their meals, and more. Ms. Wang Xiaomei experienced all of them.
One time Ms. Wang left her home in order to avoid further harassment. Using cell phone monitoring and other investigative techniques, officers from Changzhou and Botou tracked her down. They arrested her and practitioner Ms. Tang Jianying on May 26, 2012. Wang Wensheng, police head of the Botou domestic security team, took her to a temporary detention center in Botou, where she was chained to a metal chair the entire night. Unable to “transform” her at the Cangzhou Brainwashing Center, Wang Wensheng reported this case to the Changzhou Forced Labor Committee, which decided to send her to Shijiazhuang for one year of force labor and took her to the Hebei Women’s Forced Labor Camp.
When the family of Xiaomei learned that she had been sent to a labor camp, they hired a lawyer and appealed to the administrative tribunal of the Yuanhe District Court, Chaozhou City. Yet, officials from the Political and Legal Affairs Committee at the provincial and city level, as well as the 610 Office told the court not to conduct a hearing. They pressured the lawyer to withdraw from the case, but to no avail. The appeal hearing never took place, even after Xiaomei was released.
Mr. Wang Xiaodong abused by police, fellow villagers sign petition
Mr. Wang Xiaodong, 43, is a college graduate and a teacher. He was arrested by officers from the domestic security division in Botou City on February 25, 2012. About forty officers rushed into his house and took everything they could find, including hand tools. They also confiscated 20,000 yuan cash, which the family needed for their basic living expenses. In front of Xiaodong’s elderly mother and crying seven-year-old son, they covered his head with a coat and took him away.
The police's brutality angered the villagers. Three hundred people from Xiaodong’s village and neighboring villages signed and finger printed a petition, which demanded the release of their fellow villager Wang Xiaodong. Even the village committee printed their official seal to authenticate the petition letter. This case received international media attention. Sources say that the petition letter was circulated in the Party's politburo, and members were shocked.
Officials from the Political and Legal Affairs Committee, the 610 Office and police department in Botou City were furious. They retaliated against Xiaodong’s family and the other villagers. Officials of the Fu Town party committee called a special meeting for all officials, and demanded that all village party branch secretaries and village heads denounce Falun Gong. The authorities posted banners that slandered Falun Gong in Zhouguantun Village (Xiaodong’s home village), and forced the villagers to change their testimonies.
The Botou Court held a secret trial on July 18, 2012 at 9:00 a.m. The court denied Wang Xiaodong his right to legal representation, and forced him to send away two lawyers who were willing to defend his innocence. During the two hours of the hearing, the judge and the court-appointed lawyer played a drama, which produced no justice.
Related articles:
Communist Regime Secretly Sentenced Ms. Wang Fengru to Forced Labor and Stopped Wang Xiaodong from Hiring a Lawyer
Development: Wang Xiaomei Arrested for Initiating 300 Signatures Campaign to Free Her Brother
Wang Xiaodong, the Man Vouched for by 300 Neighbors, Now in Prison in Tangshan City
FDIC: Amnesty International Issues Urgent Action for Abducted Falun Gong Practitioners
