Zhang Zhaozhi - 张兆芝

Chinese name:
张兆芝
Gender:
Female
Age:
Unknown
City:
Beichen District
Province:
Tianjin
Occupation:
Date of Death:
2009-10
Date of Most Recent Arrest:
2001
Most recent place of detention:
Banqiao Women's Forced Labor Camp
Case Description:

The Beichen Police Department arrested more than 100 practitioners at the beginning of 2001, and sent half of them to a forced labor camp. Ms. Zhang Zhaozhi was arrested by Xu Youbing, director of Beichen Police Station, and Liu Feng, a local police officer, and sentenced to 18 months of forced labor.

Ms. Zhang was tortured while in the Banjiao Women's Forced Labor Camp. She was forced to stand still for hours, work overtime, and sit on a narrow bench in the same position for hours. Guards deprived her of sleep, and ordered two inmates to closely monitor her. She was not allowed to talk to anyone and if she did, she was beaten, kicked and verbally abused by the guards.

The camp guards tortured Ms. Zhang intensely because she was steadfast in her belief in Falun Dafa. After suffering for a long time under very difficult conditions, she developed high blood pressure, and kidney disease. Her face was red, and her feet were so swollen it was difficult for her to wear shoes. After having a physical exam, a camp doctor told the guards to get her out of the camp as soon as possible.

After her release, she was taken to the hospital by her family. Her systolic pressure was above 250 mmHG and the diastolic pressure was above 120 mmHG. The doctor said that her kidneys had been damaged beyond recovery.

Agents from the local 610 Office had deducted some money from her pension and she received only 500 yuan a month. When her parents brought her home to live, officers from the Beichen Police Station and the local police station in her parents' neighborhood repeatedly harassed the family at home.

Wang Baorong, head of the local 610 Office, went to the forced labor camp many times with the intention of having her sentenced to another 3 years. The camp arranged for her to have physical exams many times, but they had to give up because of her weak physical condition.

Ms. Zhang died in October 2009.