[Clearwisdom Net] At 10:30 p.m. on April 29, 2001, I was arrested for publicly explaining the truth about Falun Gong. I was taken to the Luohu Detention Center and kept there for a month of incessant maltreatment. The moment I was put into the cell, the head inmate and some of his cronies roughly searched my entire body and took my money card away from me. This was the special money card used in the prisons and it had a value of 500 Yuan (Yuan, Chinese dollar; 500 Yuan equals the average monthly income of a city worker in China.). After giving me a hard beating, they left me to sleep on the ground near the toilet. There was a dark green blanket there. I was nearly suffocated by the smells of mildew and rot mixed with sweat and excrement coming from the filthy cloth.
The everyday work was making branches for Christmas trees. Because the product was for export to Europe and America, there were strict quality requirements. A green hand had to learn how to do it from scratch. If anybody did anything wrong, he would be cursed or beaten. During the first few days I was nervous about every piece I made. Everyone was working hard under high pressure. Even if the blisters on your fingers broke open and the skin peeled off, leaving painful exposed flesh, you wouldn't get a break from the work. If you didn't finish the assigned quota for the day, you were not allowed to sleep. When you turned in the finished products, you would get five slaps in the face for each substandard piece. One inmate had five such pieces, so he was immediately slapped 25 times in the face. Because he didn't say "thank you," he got two more. Due to quality problems, this inmate and three others were forced to live in the latrine, sleeping and eating there, for three days and nights. As a result, they all got scabies.
Our daily meals were at 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. Everyone had to pay 150 Yuan per month for the food. On Wednesday and Friday afternoons, there was "meat in the meal." It was nothing but one or two pieces of meat the size of a fingernail. Sometimes, there was no meat at all. During the entire month of my detention, the only dish we had was boiled vegetables along with two boxes of rice a day. We were underfed all the time.
In each cell, there were 8 four-foot wide boards to serve as beds. The head inmate and four or five of his cronies took four of them. The other four were, altogether, 16 feet wide, which was too narrow for the more than 20 of us. To get ready to sleep, we all had to line up next to the boards, then lie down on our sides one by one. Moreover, everyone had to hold onto the next person's feet tightly. In this way more than 20 people were laid down like bricks. You tried not to go to the toilet at night because once you got up from the bed, you had no chance of getting back. It was hard to go to sleep in the beginning.
The sanitary conditions were extremely poor. Skin diseases were common. The blankets in the cell had never been washed and were very dirty, with strong smells of mildew and sweat. And there were lice. The poor conditions in Chinese prisons are undeniable facts.
On May 12, we were asked to stop working and clean the place up for an inspection from higher authorities. New blankets were brought to the cell and neatly folded. They were put aside in the evening and nobody was allowed to use them. More than 20 mugs, toothbrushes, and toothpaste tubes were put in a line. But no one was allowed to use the mugs or the toothbrushes. The toothpaste was fake. Someone had filled used tubes with water so they looked brand new. All of us shared 3 or 4 mugs in turns when we brushed our teeth. All of the toothbrushes were put together and hidden somewhere. Every day, the head inmate's buddies squeezed out a little bit of toothpaste for each one of us. The seemingly clean and neat look of the cell was in sharp contrast to the hidden blankets.
We were given notice that, for the inspection, there were 32 questions and answers for us to memorize and give the correct answers promptly when asked. It is a pity that I forgot some of them. Here I have included some questions and answers from what I remember. Among the 32 questions, there were only three to which we were supposed to give true answers, such as the last name of the supervising guard. The rest of the answers were either exaggerations or outright lies. Let's look closely at some of them:
Question (Q): Do you have enough to eat?
Answer (A): Yes!
It was "Yes" for the head inmate and his henchmen, for they could buy canned food, biscuits, powdered milk, and instant noodles. But the head inmate took the other people's money. All those prisoners had were two bad meals a day, and they got hungry very soon.
Q: Do you have meat to eat?
A: Yes!
According to the rules of the detention center, there was supposed to be an extra dish on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. You had to pay for the one on Monday. But all the money was in the hands of the head inmate. In the Wednesday and Friday dishes, there were only one or two pieces of meat the size of a fingernail, sometimes none.
Q: Did you pay for the blanket or was it issued by the center?
A: It was issued.
They did issue some blankets, but only a limited number. Most of the blankets were bought by the inmates in the cell. When there were too many people and a shortage of blankets everyone had to buy their own, as well as toothpaste, a toothbrush, a towel, underwear, toilet tissue, soap, and all the other necessary items.
Q: How often does the supervising guard come into the cell each month?
A: At least 15 times.
During the one month of my detention, I only saw him come into the cell once, and he stayed for two minutes.
Q: In what form does the head of the center give you education?
A: Through broadcast or closed circuit TV.
Not once did that happen during the month I was detained there.
Q: Did you "go through trials" when you came here?
A: No.
The so-called "going through trials" means the interrogations and beatings imposed on the new comer to make him obey the head inmate. It has become an unwritten requirement. There are plenty of types of "trials" that each new comer has to go through. It is a common phenomenon in Chinese prisons.
Q: When you have served your terms, do the police in the center ask the higher authorities for your release? How?
A: Yes. In written reports.
In fact, if they don't think you are good, they could be very slow in doing that. Many people have waited for 4 or 5 months.
Q: What is the last name of the supervising guard?
A: (The true answer is given.)
Many inmates do not know the last name of the supervising guard. That's why they are particularly reminded of that.
All the showmanship was for the inspections from the higher authorities and the supposed public supervision. There are explicit rules prohibiting beating, but when the head inmate and his henchmen beat other prisoners, no guard comes to stop them. On the contrary, they just tell them not to beat someone on the head. It is common for the guards to beat the inmates. They have adopted various means to torture you so that you can't sleep or eat well. You are completely cut off from the outside world. In addition to the beating and cursing from the head inmate and his comrades, there is the heavy work to deprive you of any breathing space.
Anyone who speaks the truth in front of the inspection team will find himself in a serious situation. With strict measures to prevent its getting out, all the truth has been hidden from the public.
