[Falun Dafa Information Center] On June 10, 2001, Zhang Shengfan, a disabled person with crutches, was arrested by Shuangcheng police in Helongjiang province. Two days later, Zhang would no longer need his crutches. He was beaten to death because he was a Falun Gong practitioner.
Early last year, 39 years old Zhang Shengfan went to appeal for Falun Gong in Beijing. After being sent back home, he was arrested and detained in Shuangcheng Second Detention Center many times. His family had to pay 2,000 Yuan [In urban areas of China, yearly income is about 6,000 Chinese Yuan] in order to bail him out. Zhang's parents died when he was young. His brother borrowed the money from every conceivable source. On Jan. 19, 2001, while Zhang was assisting students with their studies in his house, the police came and took him to a brainwashing class in the dormitory of the Staff Training School, which is in the back yard of Wenlu Middle School. On June 10, he was detained again. Zhang was brutally beaten to death on the morning of June 12.
According to local residents, the Shuangcheng government authorities dispatched vehicles to every corner of the city to arrest Falun Gong practitioners. Zhang Shengfan was among those arrested. It was estimated that many more practitioners were also arrested. Zhu Qingwen, the secretary of City Council, directly instructed this raid.
On June 11, the Chinese authorities launched their newly released declaratory statute that was specifically written for Falun Gong. Zhang Shengfan died on June 12. According to the new declaratory statute, the authorities will treat Falun Gong as a "reactionary political organization." People arrested on such a charge would traditionally be given extremely harsh punishments.
According to the records, along with Zhou Zhichang and Wang Jinguo, Zhang Shengfan is the third practitioner to die in the infamous city of Shuangcheng. Forty-five year old Zhou Zhichang was the head of the Handian Armed Forces in Shuangcheng. He died in the Shuangcheng Detention Center on May 6, 2000. At the time, his body was full of wounds and cuts.
Category: Deaths
