(Minghui.org) According to data compiled by the Minghui website, 158 residents from Dezhou City, Shandong Province were interrogated by police between July 31, 2015 and January 14, 2016 for exercising their constitutional right to seek justice for themselves.

These Dezhou locals received unexpected police visits after they filed criminal complaints against Jiang Zemin, holding the former Chinese dictator responsible for initiating the persecution of Falun Gong that resulted in their repeated arrests, detention, and subsequent emotional and financial losses.

The local authorities responded to the lawsuits by sending police to investigate, threaten, or even arrest the plaintiffs.

One practitioner died in detention, while another passed away after officers repeatedly harassed her at her home.

Targeted Residents Detained a Total of 631 Days

Many of the Dezhou practitioners were questioned by police on more than one occasion. On average, each practitioner received 1.5 police visits, some of which resulted in arrests.

A total of 117 practitioners are confirmed to have been detained for various lengths of time following police visits, totaling to 631 days.

Thirty-two people were released on the same day of their arrests after they failed the required medical examination. The remainder of the 117 practitioners were held in various facilities for up to 15 days, though all of them have been released at the time of writing.

Many of the arrested practitioners experienced various forms of abuse while in detention. In particular, a 45-year-old woman died under suspicious circumstances one day before her scheduled release. Only eleven days earlier, another Dezhou woman passed away at home after repeated police harassment.

Two Deaths in 11 Days

Ms. Sun, 45, died under suspicious circumstances on January 13, 2016, one day before her scheduled release from a local detention center. The local police declared her death a natural one and had her body forcibly cremated.

http://en.minghui.org/html/articles/2016/1/21/154886.htmlMs. Sun Xiuju

Ms. Sun's death was preceded by that of Ms. Peng Caixiu on January 2, 2016. The 58-year-old Ms. Peng had struggled to recover after years of repeated arrests and torture wreaked havoc on her health. She was still severely ill when the police descended upon her house one October day in 2015, demanding that she give up her practice of Falun Gong.

Ms. Peng's husband was indignant at the police harassment of his wife. He warned the visiting officers, “She's in such grave condition, yet you still intimidate her like this! I'll hold you responsible if anything happens to her.”

The police returned to her home at least two more times, which caused even more anguish to Ms. Peng. Her condition kept deteriorating, and she passed away on the second day of the new year. She is survived by her husband and daughter.

Abuse of Detained Practitioners

There was a cold snap in Dezhou during the seven days when Ms. Liu Dazhen was held in a local detention center in October 2015. The guards took the opportunity to take away her bed covers, leaving her shivering all night long.

Mr. Li Zongze was arrested three times for seeking the release of his father, who is serving a prison term for practicing Falun Gong. The recent college graduate's third arrest in November 2015 was triggered by a lawsuit he filed against Jiang Zemin a few months earlier. He was brutally beaten while in detention; his glasses were broken, and his arms were covered with bruises. Because he refused to wear inmate uniforms, he was denied nine meals in a row.

Mr. Li's suffering has been covered in previous reports:College Student Assaulted by Police for Inquiring about Father's CaseCollege Graduate Arrested Three Times for Seeking Father's Release

Family Members Used as Leverage Against Practitioners

As some practitioners left home to avoid arrest, Dezhou police used family members to exert pressure on the practitioners.

Woman Turns Herself in After Father Contemplates Suicide

Ms. Wang Aijun's father had a stroke and was bedridden. Police broke into the 73-year-old man's home on October 29, 2015 to pressure him to reveal his daughter's whereabouts. In the meantime, officers staked out Ms. Wang's home and her workplace.

As her father was traumatized by the officers' threats and even contemplated suicide, Ms. Wang turned herself in; she was detained for 10 days.

Daughter Gives in to Police

Mr. Yu Yongli's daughter gave in to police pressure after officers visited her tutoring center five times to look for her father. She eventually went to the police station to be interrogated.

Husband Pressured to Find Wife in Hiding

On November 2, 2015, police went to Ms. Li Junping's husband's workplace and ordered his boss to suspend his job so he could go look for his wife. The police also summoned the couple's son to the police station for questioning.

Husband Turns Wife In

Ms. Chen Yuejuan's husband received numerous threats from police in late December. He eventually persuaded his wife to go to the police station with him. Ms. Chen was later detained for a week.

Police Deceit Precedes Arrests

Ms. Peng Fengyun was babysitting a child on October 25 when she received a call saying there was a delivery for her outside the apartment building. She came downstairs with the baby in her arms, only to be seized by the police. She was released later that day after she failed the medical examination required for detention.

Another group of officers knocked on the door of Ms. Cui Jiping's home on November 3, claiming to be one of her neighbors. She opened the door, only to be arrested and detained for 7 days.

Job Losses and Extortion by Police

Some Dezhou practitioners lost their jobs after their employers gave in to police threats. Ms. Wu Qing was terminated from her teaching job on October 22. Mr. Li Zongze, the aforementioned college graduate, was also fired from his first job.

More than ten Dezhou practitioners were forced to pay large sums of money after being questioned by the police.

One police station in Qiansunxiang Town alone amassed 28,000 yuan from four families. The police extorted 5,000 yuan from Jin Weixiang, 20,000 yuan from Jin Tingkui and his wife Jin Xiuying, and 3,000 yuan from a practitioner surnamed Qu.

Huangheya Police Station extorted 4,850 yuan from seven practitioners, including Ni Xiulan, Fu Xiulan, Shang Chunjuan, Fu Xiuling, Ye Jingfeng, Zhang Guimei, and an elderly practitioner whose name remains to be investigated.

Background

In 1999, Jiang Zemin, as head of the Chinese Communist Party, overrode other Politburo standing committee members and launched the violent suppression of Falun Gong.

The persecution has led to the deaths of many Falun Gong practitioners in the past 16 years. More have been tortured for their belief and even killed for their organs. Jiang Zemin is directly responsible for the inception and continuation of the brutal persecution.

Under his personal direction, the Chinese Communist Party established an extralegal security organ, the “610 Office,” on June 10, 1999. The organization overrides police forces and the judicial system in carrying out Jiang's directive regarding Falun Gong: to ruin their reputations, cut off their financial resources, and destroy them physically.

Chinese law allows for citizens to be plaintiffs in criminal cases, and many practitioners are now exercising that right to file criminal complaints against the former dictator.