(Minghui.org) A woman in Chifeng, Inner Mongolia nearly died after 51 days of torture in a detention center. It was all because she refused to renounce her faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline persecuted in China since 1999. 

The authorities continued to harass Ms. Yu Zhanhua after she was released. To avoid future persecution and prevent her family from being implicated, Ms. Yu left home and became displaced.

Arrest and Detention

The police ambushed Ms. Yu’s husband on April 22, 2019 and took his home keys. The officers searched their home when no one was around.

Officers waited outside of Ms. Yu’s apartment and arrested her when she came home that evening.

The police brought Ms. Yu into her apartment and called in more officers to ransack the place for the second time. They confiscated her computer and about 1,000 yuan in cash.

The officers then brought Ms. Yu to Bairin Left Banner Police Department. They took turns interrogating her from 9 p.m. to 3 p.m. the next day. She was made to wear handcuffs the whole time. 

Ms. Yu was taken to Ongniud Banner Detention Center on April 23 after undergoing a blood test in the hospital. She was interrogated a few more times for over 8 hours each time.

Due to various tortures and abuses, Ms. Yu developed heart problems and her health quickly deteriorated. The authorities released her after 51 days, when she was on the verge of death.

For a month, an officer frequently called Ms. Yu’s husband in attempts to urge her to go to the police department to fill out some paperwork. Suspecting that the police were setting up a trap to arrest her again, Ms. Yu left home despite her poor health. Her family worried about her every day, not knowing her whereabouts. 

The police listed her online as a wanted fugitive and offered a reward of 10,000 yuan.