Crimes of Zhang Yulong, Deputy Secretary of the Jilin Province Political and Legal Affairs Committee, in Persecuting Falun Gong

(Minghui.org) Before Human Rights Day, December 10, 2024, Falun Gong practitioners in 45 countries submitted to their individual governments another list of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials who have been involved in the persecution of Falun Gong. Because these officials have participated in the 25-year persecution, practitioners have requested that they, along with their family members, be barred from entry to their respective countries and that their assets be frozen.

These 45 countries include The Five Eyes (United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand), all 27 countries in the European Union (EU) and 13 countries on other continents. The EU countries are Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, Belgium, Ireland, Austria, Denmark, Romania, Czechia, Finland, Portugal, Greece, Hungary, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Luxembourg, Croatia, Lithuania, Slovenia, Latvia, Estonia, Cyprus, and Malta. The remaining 13 countries are located in Asia, Europe, and the Americas: Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Switzerland, Norway, Liechtenstein, Israel, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, the Dominican Republic, and Paraguay. This was the first time Paraguay has joined the list.

The CCP’s persecution of Falun Gong has continued for 25 years and the regime has recently escalated its control overseas. According to a report published by the World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong (WOIPFG), the CCP highlighted the following goal in a May 2024 meeting organized by the Ministry of Public Security: “Pay special attention to the cooperation between Falun Gong and Western politicians to sanction high-level Chinese leaders. Stop such behavior at all costs.”

Among the perpetrators listed was Zhang Yulong, deputy secretary of the Jilin Province Political and Legal Affairs Committee.

Perpetrator Information

Full Name of Perpetrator: Zhang (last name) Yulong (first name)Chinese Name: 张玉龙Gender: MaleDate/year of Birth: September 1972Place of Birth: unknown

Title or Position

Before 2012: deputy director of the Fifth Division, director of the First Division, and director of the Fifth Division of the Jilin Provincial Domestic Security Protection Bureau (The Domestic Security Bureau has now been renamed the Political Security Bureau).

2012 – July 2020: member of the Party Committee and deputy director of the Changchun Municipal Domestic Security Division

August 2020 – Present: deputy secretary of the Jilin Provincial Political and Legal Affairs Committee

Main Crimes

Since the persecution of Falun Gong started in July 1999, the public security agencies at all levels have been responsible for arresting and harassing Falun Gong practitioners. Among the 31 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions in China, Jilin Province ranks fourth in the number of confirmed deaths of Falun Gong practitioners.

During Zhang’s several tenures in the public security sector in Jilin Province, he actively promoted the persecution policy against Falun Gong, resulting in many practitioners being arrested, harassed, and sentenced. Some were tortured and died as a result.

After Zhang became the deputy secretary of the Jilin Provincial Political and Legal Affairs Committee in August 2020, he further implemented the persecution policy by working with the public security and judiciary agencies.

Persecution During Zhang’s Tenure as Deputy Secretary of the Jilin Provincial Political and Legal Affairs Committee (August 2020 – Present)

Persecution in 2024

In the first half of 2024, four practitioners died from the persecution in Jilin, 47 were sentenced, 238 were arrested, 122 were harassed, 138 had their homes ransacked and 11 were held in brainwashing centers.

A group arrest of 12 practitioners took place in Tonghua City on March 1, 2024. Mr. Song Dianhong, Ms. Liu Xiaoyan, Ms. Sun Xiaona, Mr. Qu Xiaofei and his wife Ms. Qu Dan, Mr. Zhang Xuejie, and a practitioner surnamed Xu were taken to a brainwashing center.

At least 46 practitioners in Changchun City, Jilin Province were arrested between mid-April and mid-May 2024. April 19 and May 10 saw the most arrests, with 16 arrests each day.

According to insiders, the mass arrests were orchestrated by the Jilin Province Political and Legal Affairs Committee (PLAC) and its subordinate Changchun City PLAC and 610 Office. The PLAC and 610 Office are both extrajudicial agencies tasked with overseeing the persecution of Falun Gong. Most of the arrests were carried out by the Erdao District Police Department and its subordinate police stations. Remaining arrests were conducted by police agencies in Lyuyuan District and Nongan County.

Another group arrest of at least 35 practitioners took place in Shulan City on June 5, 2024.

Mr. Tian Yuchun from Changchun City, Jilin Province, was arrested at his home on April 18, 2024. A detention center guard notified his family on June 20, 2024, that he’d vomited and lost consciousness that day and was diagnosed with an intestinal obstruction. His family asked to visit him but were turned down. When the detention center found out that Mr. Tian also had bile duct cancer eight days later, they told his family to apply for his release on bail.

It took several days to process the required paperwork, and by the time Mr. Tian was released on bail on July 3, 2024, he was so weak that he could not walk without assistance. He died 21 days later. The Chaoyang District Court went so far as to send a threat to sentence Mr. Tian to three years after he died.

Persecution in 2023

In the first half of 2023, 11 practitioners were persecuted to death in Jilin, 56 were sentenced, 239 were arrested and 283 harassed. Another 38 practitioners were subjected to various forms of financial persecution and extortion for a total of 184,728 yuan.

Mr. Li Changhai, of Jilin City, was arrested on February 9, 2023 and placed under house arrest. The Changyi District Procuratorate indicted him on January 16, 2024 and recommended a sentence of four and a half years. Having served a seven-year term between 2012 and 2019, Mr. Li had yet to recover from the torture and mental trauma. The possibility of being imprisoned again brought him so much distress that he died days later on January 28, 2024. He was 77.

Mr. Jiao Chuanfu, in his 50s, was arrested on February 19, 2023 by officers from the Erdao District Domestic Security Division. It was confirmed in mid-May 2024 that he had been admitted to the Gongzhuling Prison to serve a ten-year term. Prior to his latest sentencing, Mr. Jiao had been repeatedly arrested and served one labor camp term for upholding his faith in Falun Gong.

Ms. Liang Lixin, of Hinggan League, Inner Mongolia, died six days after she was arrested in March 2023 while visiting her daughter in Changchun City, Jilin Province. She died in the Jiutai Detention Center while the police were in the process of building a case against her.

On June 4, 2023, authorities from the 610 Office and the Jilin City Police Department in Jilin Province dispatched a large number of agents and arrested more than 30 Falun Gong practitioners. The police had monitored the practitioners for a long time and collected footage from surveillance cameras before making the arrests. If any practitioners or their families refused to open their doors, the police would break in, sometimes breaking windows, to arrest the practitioners and ransack their homes.

Officers from the Political Security Section of the Dunhua City Police Department, the Danjiang Street Police Station, and the Minzhu Police Station arrested Ms. Wang Xiangju and more than ten older practitioners on November 28, 2023. They ransacked the practitioners’ homes and confiscated all of their Falun Gong books. The police covered the practitioners’ heads with black hoods when they brought them out of their homes. Ms. Wang, 70, was detained for nine days. Ms. Lin Shenghua, in her 60s, was detained for ten days, and Ms. Meng Qingling, in her 70s, was released on bail.

Persecution in 2022

In 2022, four practitioners were persecuted to death, 40 were sentenced, 338 were arrested, 384 were harassed, 41 had their pensions suspended, 34 were held in brainwashing centers, and seven were forced to live away from home.

Mr. Jiang Bing, of Changchun City, Jilin Province, was arrested on November 11, 2022, while he was distributing informational materials about Falun Gong. The police beat and verbally abused him during the arrest. Mr. Jiang was taken to the Changchun City Second Detention Center on November 13 and was denied admission due to his physical condition. But instead of releasing him, the police held him at a secret hotel. When his physical condition worsened, the police transferred him to the police hospital on November 16. His feet was shackled to the bed. He was forced to take unknown drugs and received seven bottles of IV drips, while remaining seated instead of lying down. He was nauseated, had systemic edema, and had difficulty walking and breathing afterwards.

Mr. Jiang was taken back to the police station on November 28, 2022 and released on bail in the evening. By then, his generalized edema had lasted nearly two weeks and he was unable to walk on his own.

The police knocked on Mr. Jiang’s door again on March 19, 2023. He didn’t open the door for them. They stayed in the hallway of his apartment building for half an hour before they finally left. The harassment left Mr. Jiang in deep distress. His condition quickly deteriorated and he passed away nine days later on March 28, 2023. He was 60.

Ms. Zhu Yuxia, a resident of Changchun City, Jilin Province, was arrested at home on September 29, 2022. During the required physical examination, she was found to have hepatitis B and cirrhosis. She was then released on house arrest, with her phone closely monitored.

Two officers showed up at the shopping mall where Ms. Zhu ran a shop, at 3 p.m. on November 7, 2022, and ordered her to go to the procuratorate to be deposed. Ms. Zhu said she didn’t have time, but when the police threatened to use force, she went with them. She saw a police officer holding a form titled “Judgment in a Criminal Case” with her name on it. She was under tremendous pressure upon returning home and feared a possible prison sentence. She was unable to work for two days.

Ms. Zhu was formally indicted by the Kuancheng District Procuratorate on June 5, 2023. At that time, her health had already declined as a result of the pressure from the relentless persecution. Her abdomen and lower body had become very swollen, and she fell into a coma on July 7, 2023. Yet a group of people from the Kuancheng District Court still showed up at her home days later and held a hearing of her case right there. They threatened to finish up prosecuting her soon. Ms. Zhu died after a few days. She was 54 years old.

Persecution in 2021

In 2021, ten practitioners were tortured to death, 96 were sentenced, six were tried in court, 14 were indicted, 287 were arrested, 732 were harassed, 79 were held in brainwashing centers, and 43 were extorted for a total of 115,160 yuan. The CCP also launched the “zero-out campaign” to track down all Falun Gong practitioners on the CCP’s blacklist, including practitioners in their 90s. If the authorities couldn’t find the practitioners, they harassed their family members.

Ms. Wang Qingwen was previously sentenced to a three-year prison term for practicing Falun Gong. Although the authorities allowed her to serve time outside of prison, the police took her into custody and sent her to the Liaoyuan City Detention Center some time in 2021. She was later transferred to the Jilin Province Women’s Prison where she developed severe illness symptoms. She was taken to the police hospital in late October 2021 and died there on October 26, 2021. The authorities cremated her body the next day and sent her ashes to her hometown in Liaoyuan City, Jilin Province. She was 78 years old. The prison refused to give Ms. Wang’s family any details about her death. Some officials said she died of rectal cancer, while others said she died of lung cancer.

Mr. Jiang Yong, a Changchun City, Jilin Province resident, was arrested on June 28, 2021, and sentenced to 8.5 years in Gongzhuling Prison on the trumped-up charge of “subverting state power.” Even though he was in critical condition after holding a prolonged hunger strike to protest the persecution, the authorities refused to release him on medical parole, citing his refusal to renounce Falun Gong. He died on January 23, 2023, the second day of the Chinese New Year. He was 31 years old.

Persecution During Zhang’s Tenure as Deputy Director of the Changchun City Domestic Security Division

Zhang Yulong was appointed deputy director of the Changchun Municipal Police Department in May 2012. He became the deputy director of the Domestic Security Division since 2016. In these capacities he played a major role in the persecution of Falun Gong in Changchun.

Persecution in 2020

In 2020, four practitioners in Changchun were persecuted to death, 14 were sentenced, 239 were arrested, 316 were harassed, and 35 were held in brainwashing centers.

Thirteen Nong’an County, Jilin Province residents were arrested during a police sweep on July 15, 2020. They were given up to ten years in prison on July 26, 2021, by the Dehui City Court. Below are their sentences.

Ms. Zhang Xiuzhi, 64, was sentenced to 10 years; Ms. Gao Xiaoqi, 56, was sentenced to 9 years; Ms. Cai Yuying, 66, was sentenced to 9 years; Mr. Feng Liqi was sentenced to 9 years; Ms. Wu Dongmei, 50, was sentenced to 7 years; Ms. Yu Jiaoru (Ms. Cai’s daughter), 34, was sentenced to 6 years; Mr. Shan Weihe was sentenced to 6 years; Mr. Lu Xiangfu was sentenced to 6 years; Ms. Zhao Xiulan, 67, was sentenced to 5 years; Ms. Sun Xiuying, 68, was sentenced to 4 years; Mr. Zhang Jingyuan was sentenced to 2 years; Ms. Sun Fengxian (the second death case mentioned above), 65, was sentenced to 2 years; and Ms. Dong Xiuhui was sentenced to 18 months.

Having endured years of mental and physical distress due to the persecution of Falun Gong, Ms. Zhao Xin, of Jilin City, Jilin Province, was arrested again in 2020 and sentenced to one year with a one-year probation on December 18, 2020. After she was released, she suffered from persistent high blood pressure and confusion upon returning home. She also had blood and pus in her stool, as well as systemic pain all over her body. In September 2022, officials from the local justice bureau harassed Ms. Zhao and ordered her to sign statements to renounce Falun Gong. The mental and physical distress took a toll on her health, and she passed away in early December 2022. She was 71.

Persecution in 2019

In the first half of 2019, at least 27 practitioners in Changchun were sentenced or tried, 77 were arrested and 21 were harassed. Ms. Song Zhaoheng and Ms. Zhang Yuanyuan died because of the persecution.

Ms. Song Zhaoheng, a 76-year-old retired teacher, was arrested on August 27, 2018, for talking to people about Falun Gong. She was detained in the Yushu City Detention Center. She appeared in court on November 16, 2018. When the judge arraigned her on January 14, 2019, he attempted to pressure her to give up Falun Gong and threatened her with her daughter’s safety and a potential nine-year sentence. Ms. Song was under tremendous mental pressure and died soon after she returned to the cell that day.

Ms. Zhang Yuanyuan was repeatedly arrested in April 2019 and her home was ransacked. Because of her high blood pressure, the detention centers refused to admit her. However, the local police continued to harass Ms. Zhang and submitted her case to the procuratorate. On the morning of June 24, 2019, the police arrested her again and took her to the local procuratorate. They threatened her and ordered her not to leave home for 15 days. She had to be on call all the time. They said if she didn’t comply, she would be arrested again.

Ms. Zhang was taken to the local court for a hearing without her family’s knowledge on July 1, 2019. She collapsed on the ground as soon as she got back home at 4 p.m. She lost consciousness, and passed away two days later.

Persecution in 2018

In the first half of 2018, at least 24 practitioners in Changchun were sentenced or tried, 126 were arrested and 21 harassed.

In the second half of 2018, 35 practitioners were sentenced or tried, 15 were put on criminal detention, 139 were arrested and 32 were harassed. Dr. Zou Xiangyang died from the persecution.

Persecution in 2017

In the first half of 2017, two practitioners in Changchun––Ms. Liu Shuyan and Ms. Yu Guixiang––were persecuted to death, 28 were sentenced or tried, 94 were arrested and 24 were harassed.

In the second half of 2017, at least three more practitioners died from persecution, 32 were sentenced or tried, 151 were arrested, and 230 were harassed.

Persecution in 2016

In 2016, at least four Falun Gong practitioners in Changchun, including Mr. Zhu Haishan, Mr. Sheng Guizhen, Mr. Yan Jingyou, and Mr. Sun Shibin, died from the persecution; 24 were sentenced or tried; 276 were arrested; and more than ten practitioners were harassed.