Zhu Hong, a 32 year old, self-employed businesswoman, lives at No. 402, Building 3 of the Provincial Installation Companys apartment complex located at 27 Huaibeizhong Road, Qiaodong District of Shijiazhuang City [Hebei Province]. She was sentenced to 3 years of forced labor because of going to Beijing to appeal six times [for Falun Gong] and she is currently jailed in the 4th squad of the 1st Sub-brigade in the 4th Brigade of the Shijiazhuang Womens Labor Camp. On July 1, 1999, she went to Beijing to appeal in the State Council's Office of Appealing. On July 20, 1999, she went to Beijing to appeal again. On July 22, she was arrested at the entrance of Fuyou Street [the office of appealing is located on this street] and was taken to Beijing Shijingshan Stadium. Later, she was sent to Langfang District and was illegally detained for about 24 hours. In the morning on July 24, she was sent back to Shijiazhuang City and kept in the police station for several hours, and then was released. She stayed at home under surveillance. On October 9, 1999, she went to Beijing to appeal a third time, and was taken to the Shijiazhuang liaison office in Beijing. At 12:00PM that evening, she was brought to Yuhuadonglu police station in Shijiazhuang, where she was detained for 2 days before she was punished with 15 days of administrative detention.
On October 28, she went to Beijing to appeal for a fourth time. At the entrance, a person on duty questioned her and was going to take her away. But due to a lack of vehicles, she was asked to come back another day. On that day, she returned to Shijiazhuang. On November 4, she went to Beijing to appeal a fifth time. Before she was able to enter the office of appealing, she was arrested, put in a police vehicle and sent back to Yuhuadonglu police station. Later, she was transferred to Dongjiao police station and punished with 15 days of administrative detention. On December 2, she went to Beijing to appeal a sixth time. She was taken to the Shijiazhuang liaison office in Beijing and kept there for 27 hours. Then she was escorted back to Shijiazhuang, first in Dongjiao police station and then in Shijiazhuang's First Detention Center, where she was punished with 30 days of criminal detention. After that, she was sentenced to 3 years of forced labor and was sent to a labor camp. After 15 days detention in the First Detention Center, she was taken to the police station for interrogation. At first, she was sent to the Fifth Hospital of Shijiazhuang City for a psychiatric examination and was forced to take a CT scan, electroencephalogram (EEG), and electrocardiogram. But nothing abnormal was found. Then, 7 or 8 psychiatric experts were convened to "collectively diagnose" her. They took turns asking her questions (mostly about Falun Dafa). She answered each question from the standpoint of Falun Dafa clearly and conscientiously. She clarified much of their confusion regarding Falun Dafa. Due to her eloquence, clarity of thinking and quick wits in answering the questions, they became speechless and ran out of measures. Finally, they had to say, "Go where you can be regulated." Afterwards, she was sent back to the detention center again. During the whole "inspection", her family was pressured to pay a fee of over 1,500 Yuan [about $180, 3-months average wage].
On January 6, 2000, she was sent to the 4th brigade of the labor camp where everybody's action was monitored. Because of practicing Falun Gong, she was shackled to a big tree and was beaten and cursed at, many times by the prisoners.
In the labor camp, laboring is forced and highly demanding. They had been forced to work for 48 hours straight in order to finish orders on time. In addition, she had endured many verbal abuses. Sometimes, even having a fever and with bleeding hands, she was also forced to carry heavy bags. This past March, they requested to work for only 8 hours per day but this was denied. They then refused to work and thus were penalized to stand against the wall. Each day they were forced to stand from around 6:00AM to midnight, without a noon break and also during holidays. Their feet swelled from standing for such long hours. Then they were forced to practice a military march. During that time, because of practicing Falun Gong, she was tied with rope twice and severely beaten up by police clubs. Her buttocks became purple and black and did not recover for a long time. She was also locked up in the workshop and was brutally beaten and verbally abused many times by the squad leader and labor camp guards. Under such circumstances, fifty-five practitioners (all female) started to boycott the wearing of distinguishing clothes, the forced laboring, and eating. Three days later, many practitioners were force-fed. In the morning on May 1, 2000, eighteen practitioners (all female) were handcuffed and put on a vehicle, accompanied by 18 guards, without being told where they were headed. They were taken to the 3rd brigade of the municipal labor camp and detained for over 60 days under completely isolated conditions. Here, they underwent frequent physical and verbal abuses and were handcuffed for practicing Falun Gong. After being handcuffed, Zhu was hung up on the steel gate for practicing Falun Gong, with just her toes barely touching the ground. She was also shackled to the steam heater and desk legs for over 20 hours. Because of a long-term hunger strike, she was very weak and lost consciousness several times. Many practitioners were force-fed many times; even the people who ate were force-fed. This story was told by the guards who returned to wash the blood stains from their heads. (During force-feeding, many practitioners were injured and began bleeding from their noses or their mouths.)
On July 3, 2000, they were escorted back to the original brigade......
As an ordinary person who knows their real situation and sympathizes with them, I eagerly hope the living conditions of Zhu Hong and her fellow practitioners can be improved. They have undergone tremendous hardships over there and may continue to suffer later. But they are all good people. Why treat them this way? If I had not witnessed this in person, I could not believe that such a "hell in the human world" could exist in our civilized country ruled by laws. Good will be rewarded with good, and evil with evil. To cherish the lives of Falun Dafa practitioners is to cherish your own lives.
Someone who knows the inside story July 12, 2000
