Latest News from China - 03/21/2000

[Beijing] Recently, a fabricated article has been spreading among Beijing practitioners. It is forged with the signature of Master Li, and was dated as "Written in 10/2/1999 and revised in 3/2/2000".

[Beijing] According to internal sources from the Army, army units are undertaking or have undertaken the following measures: all soldiers must promise not to practice Falun Dafa; all immediate family members of military officials must promise not to practice Falun Dafa.

After several practitioners from the Air Force Command Institute were arrested for appealing to the central government, no faculty members and students are allowed to leave the campus.

Some practitioners in Xicheng District detention center of Beijing started hunger strike since the 12th and 13th of this month. They request the return of their confiscated Dafa books, freedom to practice and an unconditional release. Several practitioners have been fed forcefully during the strike.

[Beijing] Xiao Fengwen, 47 year old and living in Huajia Di of Chaoyang District in Beijing, had already petitioned twice to the government. After the second petition, she was thrown in the Chaoyang District detention center. During the detention, she was forced to wear a torturing device named "dog chain" for four days because of practicing Falun Gong. When undergoing forced food-feeding as she went on hunger strike, a cell supervisor with last name "Gao" treaded her mouth with a foot wearing leather shoe. He also used an iron spoon in attempt to prize open her mouth. As a result, her teeth were loosened, blood gushed out from her lips. The supervisor also instructed prisoners to beat her as forcefully as they could. All those who practised Falun Gong during detention had been beaten or fined. In the end, cell supervisors ran out of handcuffs, and had to borrow from male cells.

[Beijing] My name is Yan Baoshuang, 36. I originally worked for the Sanhe City Normal Training School in Hebei province. Later I was fired because of appealing to the government.

Last year on Oct.28 I went to appeal, and was detained for 10 days. Then on Dec. 4, I went to appeal again, and was detained in Sanhe Public Security Bureau. During my detention, I was beaten and forced to kneel on the ground for practicing Falun Gong. At that time, my fingers went black and my face turned pale because of the torture. One month later, my left thumb was still numb, and even today it has not recovered completely. I was detained 52 days before being released.

Then on Feb. 4, 2000, for the third time I went to Beijing and practiced at Tiananmen Square. I was taken away by a police van and detained in Tiananmen police station. The police beated me for displaying Dafa banners: I was hit once in my left eye, and several times in my right eye; they also grabbed my hair and hit my head against the wall. Not until one months later did the swelling in my right eye subside. On Feb. 6, I was transferred to the Chaoyang District Detention Center in Beijing for 30 days' detention. Afterward, I was sent to the regional representative office in Beijing and was detained another 11 days. Finally, we were released after 3 days of hunger strike.

[China] It is said that Falun Gong practitioners in some cities in China have started group morning practice or exchanges. Usually the size of the groups ranges from several to a few dozens, and they are flexible and loose in form.

[Heilongjiang] It is said that a Workers' College in Daqing city of Heilongjiang province is offering classes for Dafa practitioners (the number is available). The purpose of the classes is to "transform their mind". Practitioners are not allowed to go home and must pay 180 yuan on a daily basis.

In addition, some policemen (plainclothes, editor's note) has always been seen at the railway station of Daqing city to detect and intercept practitioners from going to Beijing to petition.

[Nanchang, Jiangxi Province] Nanchang No.3 Detention Center located at N. 27th street has been well known for brutality against Falun Dafa practitioners. Beatings, cursings, and use of torturing devices are prevailent. The Center cadres, as well as prisoners organized by the cell heads work together to torture practitioners.

To give an example, Jail Commissar Zheng came and beat the practitioners every week. He shouted abuse at the practitioners, full of scurrilous and obscene language. He kicked and forced the practitioners to read the articles on the newspaper which attacked Falun Gong. If practitioners didn't read, he would kick them. Once he was slapping a practitioner's face first to one side then the other, he was surprised to find that she was his niece when the practitioner raised her head. He just said to her, " how come it's you!". This practitioner only obtained Falun Dafa in April, 1999, but she was very determined to practice. She was one of the eight practitioners shackled together.

Women jail No. 19 in the third detention camp is the place with the most demon-nature. As long as practitioners were seen to be practicing, they would be beaten and poured cold water on their body etc. The practitioners were shackled together with their hands roped together with hemp string. The officer pulled practitioner's hair and punished them to stand still. If they were found to touch the wall, the officer would bump them against the wall. Once the practitioners were punished to stand still up to 60 hours (Two days and one night or two daylights and one night) on end. The feet of the practitioners were swollen and bleeding due to the long-time standing with shackles. Even though the situation in the jail was severe, the practitioners did not stop practicing. Whenever they were seen practicing, they would be poured cold water by the officials on duty. Jiang Lanying in Women Jail No.19 was hung up by the head of the jail for practicing. The head of the jail withstood her armpits with her elbows, trampled on her, punched and kicked her, and poured urine through her neck open. The head of the jail didn't stop torturing Jiang Lanying until one prisoner said, " Do you still have slightest human feelings left?" One night, the criminal offenders led by the head of the jail beat Jiang Lanying, the beating woke all the prisoners in the neighbor jail-No.18 across the wall.. The jail head did not stop the beating until all the prisoners in No.18 were shouting at the head of the jail.

In addition, it is heard that during the "two sessions", to prevent Dafa practitioners from going to Beijing to appeal, the government put many practitioners who did not explicitly promise not to appeal into detention centers. The No.1 and No.3 dentention centers of Nanchang city are packed with Dafa practitioners.