(Minghui.org) A 64-year-old woman serving 3.5 years for her faith in Falun Gong was brutally tortured since her admission to prison. Her abuse recently lessened after her husband’s persistent efforts to seek justice for her.

Ms. Jing Yuhua, a retired heating company worker in Jiamusi City, Heilongjiang Province, was arrested on August 31, 2020, and sentenced to 3.5 years in prison days after she stood trial on December 28, 2020. She was admitted to the Heilongjiang Province Women’s Prison on August 12, 2021.

As Ms. Jing held firm to her faith, the prison guards assigned inmates to watch her around the clock. The inmates forced her to sit on a small stool from 4 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day. The slightest movement would result in beatings and verbal abuse. Ms. Jing’s buttocks developed infected sores after this long-time sitting torture.

Torture reenactment: sitting on a small stool

Due to the constant beatings, Ms. Jing had bruises all over her body and all but one of her teeth were knocked out. She had trouble eating and became malnourished and emaciated. Sun Shuhua, a convicted murderer, once slapped Ms. Jing in the face so hard that she became deaf in one ear. The prison also limited Ms. Jing’s monthly spending from her commissary account to 100 yuan. With the marked-up prices on everything in prison, Ms. Jing was barely able to purchase any daily necessities. 

Ms. Jing’s husband was infuriated upon learning of his wife’s abuse in prison. From February to July 2023, he utilized various administrative and legal channels to voice his concerns. While most government agencies did not respond to him, the Harbin City Procuratorate sent an investigation team to the prison to interview his wife. 

When the couple had a virtual meeting on October 12, 2023, Ms. Jing said she had been reassigned to a different team, where she was treated better. She had gained some weight and appeared more relaxed. 

Prior to her latest imprisonment, Ms. Jing was detained many times for practicing Falun Gong, including spending three years in a forced labor camp. Each time she was arrested, she was savagely beaten, injected with unknown toxic drugs, and subjected to many other forms of torture. When she was not in detention, she was forced to live away from home to avoid further arrests. Her husband and many other family members were harassed and extorted for huge sums of money by the police. This time, when Ms. Jing was jailed again, her husband was adamant in seeking justice for her. 

Request for Information Disclosure

On February 23, 2023, Ms. Jing’s husband filed an information disclosure request with the Heilongjiang Province Women’s Prison in accordance with the “Regulations on Open Government Information of The People’s Republic Of China.” He requested the following: 

- the legal basis and relevant provisions that the prison used to order Jing Yuhua to admit her “guilt” and renounce Falun Gong.

- the legal basis that the prison used to still keep Jing Yuhua in the Intensive Training Division one and a half years after her prison admission, when usually only newly admitted Falun Gong practitioners are kept at the division.

- the conditions and procedures that Jing Yuhua was required to follow to be allowed phone calls with her family.

- the tactics used by various departments within the prison in their attempts to make Jing Yuhua give up her belief in Falun Gong.

- the physical examination results of Jing Yuhua and what medical treatments were provided to her.

According to Article 24 of the “Regulations on Open Government Information of The People’s Republic Of China,” “administrative agencies should provide a reply within 15 business days from receiving a request.” 

The Heilongjiang Province Women’s Prison didn’t respond after signing the receipt of the request mailed to them by registered mail.

Request for Administrative Reconsideration

On April 2, 2023, Ms. Jing’s husband filed an administrative reconsideration request with the Heilongjiang Provincial Government Reconsideration Office in accordance with the “Administrative Reconsideration Law of the People’s Republic of China.”

He requested that the Heilongjiang Province Women’s Prison be ordered to fulfill its legal obligation for information disclosure. In the meantime, he also reported prison warden Han Yanwei’s failure to respond to his information disclosure request to various government agencies, including the procuratorates at all levels in the province, the Heilongjiang Province Prison Administration Bureau, the Department of Justice, the Ministry of Justice, the People’s Congress and the standing committees at all levels, and the Heilongjiang Province Government General Office, the State Council, the Discipline Inspection Commission and the Supervisory Commission at all levels.

According to Article 19 of the Administrative Reconsideration Law, the reconsideration agency should respond within 60 days. 

Ms. Jing’s husband, however, hasn’t received any response from the Heilongjiang Provincial Government Reconsideration Office by the time of writing. 

Administrative Litigation Against the Prison and the Reconsideration Office

On July 3, 2023, Ms. Jing’s husband filed an administrative litigation against the Heilongjiang Province Women’s Prison and the Heilongjiang Provincial Government Reconsideration Office. He cited as legal basis Article 2 of the “Administrative Procedure Law of the People’s Republic of China,” namely, “If a citizen, a legal person or any other organization considers that his or its lawful rights and interests have been infringed upon by a specific administrative act of an administrative organ or its personnel, he or it shall have the right to bring a suit before a people’s court in accordance with this Law.”

The suit was filed with the Railway Transportation Court in Harbin, the capital city of Heilongjiang Province.

Ms. Jing’s husband also filed a complaint against the two defendants’ failure to respond to his information disclosure request and administrative reconsideration request to the same group of agencies to which he addressed his concerns on April 2, 2023.

In his litigation and complaint, he requested:

- the prison be investigated and prosecuted in accordance with the Criminal Law. More specifically, the prison caused intentional injury to Ms. Jing (Article 234), abused her in their custody (Article 248), deprived her of her freedom of religious belief (Article 251), and abused its power and neglected its legal duty (Article 397).

- the prison be ordered to respond to his informational disclosure request.

- the Heilongjiang Provincial Government Reconsideration Office be investigated and prosecuted for abusing its power and neglecting its legal duty (Article 397 of the Criminal Law), as well as be ordered to respond to his administrative reconsideration request.

- Jing Yuhua be ensured her rights to survival, life and health, and freedom of belief while being held at the Heilongjiang Province Women’s Prison.

Harbin Municipal Procuratorate Investigates the Facts in Prison

After receiving the complaint that Ms. Jing’s husband filed on July 3, 2023, the Harbin City Procuratorate sent an investigation team to the Heilongjiang Province Women’s Prison to talk to her. She detailed her abuse, such as how her teeth were knocked out and how she became deaf in one ear after beatings.

She emphasized that she had evidence to support everything she said. The investigation team recorded her every word, as did the prison personnel. 

After the investigation team left, the prison reassigned Ms. Jing from Team Four of the Intensive Training Division to Team Twelve. They also increased the cap on her monthly spending from 100 yuan to 300 yuan.

On October 12, 2023, Ms. Jing’s husband had a virtual visit with her. He noted that she looked more relaxed and had put on some weight. She said that the environment in Team Twelve was a lot better than Team Four. Her husband reminded her, “If anyone beats you again, just tell me and I won’t tolerate her!”

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