Practitioner's Death from Torture Generates Strong Reactions Locally

4/3/2003

(Clearwisdom.net)

On February 17, 2003, practitioner Liu Jie in Shuangcheng City, Heilongjiang Province was tortured to death in the Shuangcheng Second Detention Center.

On February 16, 2003, Liu Jie and her husband (who does not practice Falun Gong) operated their taxi as usual. Liu gave two picture cards printed with "Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance" (the principles of Falun Gong) to two passengers as New Year's gifts when they were buying taxi tickets from her. It happened that one of the two passengers was a family member of a man named Liu Zijing, who worked at the "610 Office" in Shuangcheng City, and he called the local "610 Office" [an agency specifically created to persecute Falun Gong, with absolute power over each level of administration in the Party and all other political and judiciary systems]. Liu Zijing notified the national security division in the police department and policeman Tong Shuangqun came with some other people and arrested Liu Jie and her husband. Later they were put in the Shuangcheng Second Detention Center and were detained there illegally.

The same day, the police ransacked Liu Jie's house. Her parents-in-law, who were both sick in bed, were terrified and became even more ill. Since her husband was not a practitioner, he was released to take care of his parents at home, but only after having 2,000 Yuan extorted from him. It also cost him 5,000 Yuan to get back the taxi that their livelihood depended on. Eleven days later, the family members suddenly received a notification saying that Liu Jie was dead. The detention center personnel and the police station claimed that Liu died of a disease. But since she started practicing Falun Gong, Liu's health had always been very good. How could a person suddenly die like this in eleven days?

Similar instances have happened in Shuangcheng City before. The police and inmates in the First Detention Center poured whisky through the nose of the handicapped practitioner Zhang Shengfan, who screamed as though he was being torn apart, and died in a few minutes. The police in the Second Detention Center coerced the inmates there to beat up the hunger-striking practitioner Wu Baowang, and force-fed him with concentrated salt water, causing him to die later that day. We have heard that somebody saw on the 17^th that Liu Jie had already stopped breathing when she was sent to the third clinic of the city hospital. This was exactly the same as what had happened to Zhang Shenfan in the First Detention Center, where he was sent to the emergency center for rescue after he was already dead. The police was acting to hide what they had done and to escape responsibility.

A peaceful family thus was destroyed. Liu Jie's parents in law still do not know that their beloved daughter-in-law has already been tortured to death. Her young son is still looking forward to her coming home soon.

Liu Jie's death generated strong reactions amongst people in Shuangcheng City, Heilongjiang Province. Relatives and friends and all righteous people in the city, aside from feeling indignant, witnessed clearly the persecution against Falun Gong and the evil nature of Jiang's gang.

The former coworkers of Liu all said: "It is truly unjust for such a person to die like this." A department manager said: "They totally disregarded her right to even live." A teacher in a private high school said to a practitioner: "Falun Gong, I sympathize with you." A taxi-ticket salesperson said with anger in his voice: "Falun Gong people are just too nice. If it was me, I would..." Most other people condemned the evil person who reported Liu, the "610 Office," and the murderer in the detention center.

In merely three years, a city as small as Shuangcheng has had 10 practitioners who died as a result of being persecuted for their belief in Falun Dafa, either locally or out of town. They are: Zhou Zhichang, Wang Jinguo, Zhang Shengfan, Zhao Yayun (femle), Wu Baowang, Zang Dianlong, Jiang Liguo, Zhang Tao, Wang Xiulan (female), and Liu Jie (female). This is only a partial list with those whose names are known. There are many who were murdered for their belief whose names are not known.