(Minghui.org) A demobilized military officer serving a three-year term is being denied family visits for not renouncing his faith in Falun Gong.
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Mr. Wang Hongwei, a resident of Zhengzhou City, Henan Province, was arrested on August 25, 2017 for filing a criminal complaint against Jiang Zemin, the former leader of the communist regime, for ordering the persecution of Falun Gong.
Mr. Wang was tried by Yuzhou Court and sentenced to three years on September 18, 2018. He has been imprisoned at the 9th ward in Zhengzhou Prison since late 2018.
Because he refused to let the guards take his picture or wear a prison uniform, the guards savagely beat him and ordered inmates to strip and tear up his clothes, in order to force him to comply.
The prison has only allowed his family to visit him twice since his imprisonment.
The first visit was made possible after his father, in his 80s, begged the head of the prison repeatedly. During the second visit, the guards ordered a person who had given up Falun Gong, to be present during the meeting in an attempt to persuade Mr. Wang to abandon his belief. He refused to renounce his faith.
When his family demanded to visit him again after that, the prison authorities denied their requests and said they had to obtain approval from the local 610 Office.
The prison also didn't allow Mr. Wang's family to send in any money, so he wasn't able to buy daily necessities.
Mr. Wang began to practice Falun Gong in 1998. Because of upholding his faith, he was forced to leave the army in 1999.
He was detained at a forced labor camp for a year between 2002 and 2003, and then sentenced to six years in prison in 2005. He was subjected to constant torture, including beatings, solitary confinement, standing for prolonged periods and verbal abuse.
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