(Minghui.org) A woman from Xuyong County, Sichuan Province served two prison terms for a total of 7.5 years for upholding her faith in Falun Gong.
While serving her second prison term, Ms. Wang Manqun was injected with unknown drugs and had her pension suspended. Even though her pension was resumed in 2018, the local authorities never returned the suspended pension benefits of more than 100,000 yuan to her.
Taking Up Falun Gong
Ms. Wang began to learn Falun Gong in July 1999, the same month when the communist regime launched an all-out persecution of the spiritual and meditation discipline.
Ms. Wang wasn't deterred by the terror and persevered. At the same time, she was also delighted to see her long-term nervous exhaustion, anemia, arthritis, and problems with multiple organs disappear. Not only did she become healthy, but she also quit gambling and took on the responsibility of caring for her in-laws and children.
First Arrest
The local police broke into Ms. Wang’s home on April 4, 2006 and, without identifying themselves or showing a warrant, ransacked the place. They confiscated her Falun Gong literature and personal property. She was forced into a police car and taken to Luzhou City Detention Center.
An officer interrogated her three times and threatened to put her in a labor camp and stop her pension.
Sentenced to Four Years
Ms. Wang was tried by Xuyong County Court on September 20, 2006. She testified in her own defense and argued that she didn't violate any laws by practicing Falun Gong.
The judge sentenced her to four years in prison on November 21, 2006. She appealed the verdict to Luzhou Intermediate Court, which ruled to uphold her verdict during a hearing on February 9, 2007.
Ms. Wang was taken to Longquanyi Women's Prison in April 2007.
Police Pay People to Fabricate Evidence Against Ms. Wang
Ms. Wang was arrested for the second time for handing out Falun Gong literature on September 16, 2014. The police paid four alleged witnesses 20 yuan each to fabricate evidence against her.
During the interrogation, the police held Ms. Wang down and collected her fingerprints and toeprints. One officer stepped on her right foot during the process.
Ms. Wang wasn't given enough food at the local detention center, while she had to pay a hefty price for it. The guards also withheld goods sent by her family. She thus had to purchase daily necessities at much higher prices from the detention center.
The guards ordered her to give blood samples for AIDS tests. She resisted, suspecting it could be used for potential blood type matching for organ harvesting.
Sentenced to Three and a Half Years
Ms. Wang appeared in Xuyong County Court on January 7, 2015. She pleaded not guilty and argued that no law criminalizes Falun Gong in China.
The judge sentenced her to three and a half years five months later, on June 17, 2015. She filed another appeal with Luzhou Intermediate Court.
A judge at the appeals court held a secret hearing inside a makeshift courtroom at Naxi District Detention Center on December 1, 2015. None of her family members were allowed to attend the hearing.
The judge upheld her verdict a few days later.
Tortured in Prison
Ms. Wang was taken to Longquanyi Women's Prison in Chengdu City on January 20, 2016. Three guards forcibly drew a blood sample from her that day.
For the first three months, she wasn't allowed to leave her cell. The guards instigated prisoners to torture and brainwash her in attempts to force her to renounce her faith. The prisoners also forced her to clean the cell and do other chores for them.
Ms. Wang's health deteriorated, and she was hospitalized. A doctor gave her unknown drugs that caused her condition to worsen. She couldn’t swallow food or walk. Despite her condition, other prisoners carried her to work.
Ms. Wang once talked to a division chief to defend Falun Gong and was placed under “strict management” for three months. She had to work during the day and sit still after she returned to her cell until midnight. The guards threw away her warm clothes and comforter, leaving her with thin clothes and bed sheets during the freezing winter.
In addition to the freezing torture, guards also rationed her food, leaving her hungry at all times.
A guard surnamed Zhong once said to her, “You said I was persecuting you. Now I'm really persecuting you.”
Ms. Wang’s health continued to deteriorate after three months of strict management. She experienced severe swelling in her legs, constantly vomited, and had symptoms of leukemia. She passed out one night in April 2017 and was hospitalized again.
Pension Suspended
Ms. Wang was released in March 2018, only to find out that the local social security office had suspended her pension since October 2014, one month after her second arrest. Although her pension payments were resumed in November 2018, the four-year gap resulted in over 100,000 yuan in losses for her.
The police and local officials continued to harass her at home from time to time.
Related report:
Police Buy False Testimony to Sentence 68-Year-Old Sichuan Practitioner
