2003-7-17

Ms. Zhao Dewen was a 50-year-old Dafa practitioner from the Beizhen District in Tianjin City. She was illegally arrested by the police at her home in early 2001 and sentenced to one year of forced labor and brainwashing at the Banqiao Female Labor Camp. She was assigned to the 1^st team in the 5^th brigade, and then reassigned to the 1^st team in the 2^nd brigade. Her jail sentence was extended twice due to her steadfast perseverance in practicing Dafa. She was tortured to death on June 3, 2003.

(Reference: http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2003/7/13/38080.html)

During her detention at the labor camp, she was constantly tortured because of her refusal to sign the "repentance statement." The prison guards instigated drug addict convicts and other felons to beat her, furthering the idea of "Beat them to death without concern. Count the deaths as suicides;" "Whoever can coerce Dafa practitioner to sign the repentance statement after beating them will receive a bonus and a sentence reduction. Otherwise, failure means additional sentences." Under such coercion, felons and convicts act without any remorse or apprehension. A guard with the last name "Hao" ordered four inmates to lift Zhao Dewen then slam her onto the floor. Many other Dafa practitioners were tortured as well.

Many Dafa practitioners were hung and beaten and shocked with electric batons by the prison guards. Zhao Dewen died after she suffered massive internal bleeding caused by being slammed onto the ground repeatedly. In order to cover up the real cause of her death, labor camp officials notified her family that she committed suicide. After her family paid their last respects, they noticed that the prison authorities had put brand new clothes and socks on her body. Yet after they lifted the clothes they saw an inch long bloody wound under her right armpit. Her wrist had another "X" shaped wound. Her neck also showed signs that she had been strangled by a rope. The prison authorities refused to let her family transfer her body home and cremated her body themselves.

According to the latest information, four Dafa practitioners were tortured to death recently. Invariably, the prison authorities used "sudden heart attack" or "suicide" as the causes of death when notifying their families.

Recently more Dafa practitioners have been either illegally arrested, sentenced to forced labor, or become homeless in Dagang District, Tianjin City. Below is a partial list of these persecuted Dafa practitioners.

Guo Yonghong, illegally arrested;

Wang Wenxiu, arrested and sentenced to two years of forced labor;

Ma Xiurong, arrested and sentenced to two years of forced labor;

Zhang Qixiang, arrested and sentenced to two and a half years of forced labor;

Wang Yuncai, arrested;

Jiao Linhui, became homeless;

Dafa practitioner Zhao, arrested;

There were several more practitioners with unknown identities. There are still many Dafa practitioners who are being detained beyond their original sentence terms at the Banqiao Labor Camp.