(Minghui.org) The 11th ward in Shandong Province Women’s Prison is dedicated to persecuting the practitioners of Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted in China since July 1999.
Unlike the plain buildings that house other wards, the 11th ward is surrounded by an 18-foot tall metal fence and is a prison inside a prison.
The forms of torture used in the 11th ward are especially barbaric. Inmates from other wards who refused to cooperate with the guards would become docile after spending time there. People in other wards call the 11th ward a “crazy ward,” implying that the guards and the inmates who assisted them have lost their sanity and actively help the Chinese communist regime to torture good people simply for their spiritual belief.
Most of the Falun Gong practitioners incarcerated here were elderly women between 50 and 70, with some in their 80s. As soon as they were admitted to the prison, guards would drag them to a small room and try to pressure them into writing statements to renounce their faith.
If a practitioner refused to write the statements, the guards would not allow her to shower or wash. The guards would then try to brainwash her by making her watch videos that slandered Falun Gong.
The practitioner was ordered to sit still on a small stool from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. while two inmates watched her closely. The inmates shouted and cursed her if she moved.
Eventually, some practitioners’ eyes hurt, and their vision blurred. Their buttocks bled or their tailbones were injured due to the long hours of sitting. The guards forbade them from talking to or looking at each other or writing things about Falun Gong. Those who violated the rules would be disqualified for term reductions.
One of the major tactics used to brainwash the practitioners was to force them to watch videos put together by collaborators, former practitioners who had renounced their faith after being tortured, and then assisted the guards in brainwashing other practitioners.
The collaborators often twisted the meanings of Falun Gong’s teachings or make things up to deceive the practitioners who had just arrived in the prison into giving up their faith.
If a practitioner pointed out any mistakes in the brainwashing videos, the guards would snap and stop her from talking. The authorities also forced the practitioners to watch videos on evolution and accept the idea of atheism or read thought reports of the collaborators that had been compiled into books. The guards also ordered the practitioners to write thought reports, swear allegiance to the Chinese communist regime, and sing the national song that praised the regime.
Some inmates were also ordered to watch the slanderous videos about Falun Gong. After they developed a negative attitude about the practice and believed that the persecution of Falun Gong was justified, the guards selected some of them to participate in the persecution.
The head of the inmate’s group selected to persecute the practitioners was serving a 19-year term. She monitored and reported what the practitioners did every day to the guards. Another inmate in the group was sentenced to life for murder. She often yelled at the practitioners, “The Chinese communist regime should sentence you and all your relatives to death.”
Whatever a practitioner wanted to do had to be reported to the guards. The guards watched the practitioners around the clock on the surveillance cameras and had other inmates monitor the practitioners. Believing that the practitioners were the real criminals, the inmates thought they had power over them. These inmates insulted and shouted at the practitioners at will and often tortured and restricted them from drinking water or using the toilet.
If the practitioners refused to acknowledge that they were “guilty” for practicing Falun Gong, the guards would not let them purchase daily necessities such as toothpaste and toilet paper. They forced the practitioners to fill out an application for the things they wanted to purchase. The application required them to admit that they were criminals. If the practitioners refused to renounce their faith, the guards threatened and insulted them. The guards instigated the inmates to berate and beat them. The practitioners were frequently held in solitary confinement and tortured.
The prison authorities encouraged the inmates to blow the whistle on others. Points were given to the whistleblowers, which allowed them to get reduced sentences. Those who were reported would lose points.
In the 11th ward, the guards ordered the practitioners to blow the whistle on other practitioners, especially about the level of their involvement in the practice and whether they had been printing Falun Gong informational materials at home. The guards claimed that it was the rule and the practitioners had to do so. But none of the practitioners cooperated with the guards.
The authorities would not allow the practitioners to work and prevented them from purchasing extra food or snacks, even when the prison didn’t give them enough to eat. The mental pressure and the lack of nutrition took a toll on the health of many of the practitioners.
The authorities also extorted money from the practitioners. The prison authorities made the practitioners’ families pay the so-called fines (up to 50,000 yuan or 7,500 USD), or the practitioners would be disqualified from getting term reductions. They were able to get into the practitioners’ bank accounts or salary accounts and withdraw the fines if their families refused to pay.
Additional Information on Other Inmates Torturing Practitioners at Shandong Province Women’s Prison
Convicted Felons Instigated by Prison Guards to Torture Falun Gong Practitioners
The Mental Exploitation of Falun Gong Practitioners at Shandong Province Women’s Prison
Falun Gong Practitioners Drugged in Shandong Women’s Prison for Practicing Their Faith
Torture Methods Used in Shandong Province Women’s Prison to Persecute Falun Gong Practitioners
Shandong Women’s Prison Instigates Inmates to Torture Falun Gong Practitioners