Summary of Other Articles and News - January 1, 2004

Facts of the Persecution

Ms. Li Dongqing, a practitioner from Shenyang City, was sentenced to a 3-year term because she appealed for Falun Gong and told people the facts about the persecution. She was held at Masanjia Forced Labor Camp. Instead of releasing her at the end of her term in September 2002, the camp trumped up some unjust charges and sentenced her to another 5 years. Now she is being held at the Dabei Women's Prison where they continue to persecute her.

Mr. Zhao Chongli and Ms. Zhao Lanjun are practitioners from Cangzhou City, Hebei Province. On May 19, 2003, the local police department unlawfully arrested Mr. Zhao Chongli. He was treated inhumanly and his chest was injured. To protest the persecution, he went on a 5-day hunger strike. During the strike he was force-fed three times, causing severe injury to his esophagus. Then he was sent to the detention center where they continued to persecute him. He was not released until he became seriously ill with a fever that made him delirious. On December 29, 2003 he was taken prisoner again and sent to the First Forced Labor Camp of Kaiping District of Tangshan City. Ms. Zhao Lanjun was captured and detained, her home was searched several times, and her property was confiscated. She suffered cruel physical and mental persecution. On December 29, 2003 she was captured again and detained at the Second Detention Center of Cangzhou City. Now she is on a hunger strike. By January 7, 2004, she had been on hunger strike for 10 days. She also has been force-fed several times.

The Forced Labor Camp of Qingdao City of Shandong attempted to force practitioners to give up their belief in the following four ways: isolation, separation, team method, and forced conversion. Under the isolation method, the policemen locked steadfast practitioners in the guardhouse, or locked all doors and windows of the cell where the individual practitioners were isolated. They secluded the practitioner and prohibited them to have contact with anyone else. Under the separation method, they took the practitioners who nullified their signatures on the "Three Statements,"* and separated them from other practitioners. The policemen appointed other criminals to monitor them. The policemen also beat and insulted them on a regular base. Under the team method, the policemen gathered those practitioners who had not cooperated and forced them do very heavy work or write reports, etc. Under the forced conversion method, the policemen would apply more cruel persecution methods to those who refused to give up Falun Gong. Most of the practitioners were tortured to different degrees and their terms were extended.

Mr. Liu Dongling, a practitioner from Huanghua City of Hebei Province, was arrested on July 19, 1999. He was unlawfully detained for 23 days, and the police extorted 5,000 Yuan from him [500 Yuan is the average monthly income for an urban worker in China]. On Oct. 4, 2000, on the way to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong, he was arrested and detained again by the police of Huanghua City. He went on a 7-day hunger strike. During that period, he was cruelly beaten and tortured. On November 30, he was sentenced to 3 years in a forced labor camp. The Shijiazhuang City Forced Labor Camp released him because of his poor physical condition. Afterwards, the Police Department of Huanghua City detained him for 4 months and extorted 5,000 Yuan from him. At the end of June 2001, he was captured when attending a Falun Gong experience sharing conference. He was not released until he became extremely ill from the torture. The "610 Office"** continued to harass him during his recuperation. His wife asked for a divorce because of the tremendous pressure. Two weeks later Mr. Liu Dongling was forced to leave his home and become homeless to escape the relentless persecution. Thus, the "610 Office" put an arrest warrant in the amount 10,000 Yuan out for his capture. It has been three years since Mr. Liu Dongling was forced into exile.

Since July 20, 1999, Ms. Fu Shunju, a practitioner of Yuanshi Village of Mengyang Town of Pengzhou City in Sizhuan Province, was taken to a brainwashing center many times. They also extorted 1,000 Yuan from her. On April 22, 2002, Ms. Fu Shunju was taken to the town government without just cause. She was beaten black and blue. Her family members went to the town government to ask for her release. The town government officials asked for a 40,000-50,000 Yuan fine. Her son found some middleman to negotiate. In the end, the family members paid 11,000 Yuan to bring her back to home.

There were a lot of Falun Gong practitioners in Central China Normal University located at Wuhan City. Since July 20, 1999 the practitioners there have been relentlessly persecuted. Wang Haoyun, an employee at the Information Office of the Article Institute, was tortured to death. Four practitioners were sentenced to a forced labor camp. Practitioners from the university were taken to the detention center a total of 14 times, and to the brainwashing center a total of 23 times. These totals account for those who were taken away repeatedly. Three student practitioners were forced to leave school. Sun Gang of the university's Adult Education Institute and Wu Xinguo of the university's elementary school were fired. Many students' graduation, job search, and graduate school enrollment was affected. They fired the elderly entrance guard. The officials forced some elderly practitioners to publicly defame Falun Gong during a conference that was intended to slander Falun Gong. The Party Committee officials assigned to the college and security office were instrumental in the persecution.

Policemen like Wang Yingzhou (male) at the Forced Labor Camp of Daqing City participated in the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners without hesitation. They forced Falun Gong practitioners to take dangerous medications. The practitioner who refused to take it was force-fed the medication. They usually pried the practitioners teeth open with large screwdrivers. This resulted in a lot of broken teeth and loss of dental work. Wang Yingzhou punched Practitioner Yu Shuang so badly that his face became distorted and he suffered internal injuries as well. Mr. Zhuang Gangxiang was tortured physically and mentally. He became disoriented and developed problems urinating. His left eardrum was broken from the beating. Practitioner Mr. Liu Fubin's skull was injured from the inhuman beating. Practitioner Mr. Feng Guangyun was force-fed urine twice by a criminal named Li Er and suffered from other cruel tortures. His blood pressure reached 170-200 mmhg.

*Practitioners are coerced under brainwashing and torture to write these as proof that they have given up their belief. Created by the "610 Office," the three statements consist of a letter of repentance, a guarantee to never again practice Falun Gong, and a list of names and addresses of all family members, friends and acquaintances who are practitioners.

**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.