Another Possible Poisoning: Mr. Zhang Dies One Month After Release

Mr. Zhang Shixiang, 66, from Jianyang City, Sichuan Province, was swollen all over when he was released from Wumaping Prison on November 3rd, 2014. He had just finished his six-year prison term.

After his release he was unable to take care of himself. His legs were so swollen that some areas ruptured and bled. He passed away in great pain on December 4th, one month after his release.

His family and friends suspect that he was poisoned in prison. Another Jianyang practitioner, Ms. Li Mengshu, who died in 2009, had very similar symptoms when she was released from the Chengdu City Women's Prison.

Before the Poison

While being held at the Wumaping Prison, the prison authorities tortured Mr. Zhang in an attempt to coerce his renouncement of Falun Gong. They also forced him to take unknown drugs. One prison doctor shouted, “You'll never be released if you don't take our medicine or renounce Falun Gong—even if you die here.”

Mr. Zhang was arrested while telling people about the persecution of Falun Gong in a Qianxi Department Store on June 4th, 2007. The police ransacked his home, but Mr. Zhang managed to escape from the police station that afternoon. However, he was still forced to flee his home to avoid further persecution.

Mr. Zhang was arrested at his rental home on November 4th, 2008. He was taken to the Jianyang Detention Centre. A month later, he was taken to the Erehu Brainwashing Centre, where he was deprived of sleep for five days and subjected to rounds of brainwashing. He was sentenced to six years in prison on December 8th, 2009.

Mr. Zhang has been arrested and detained several times since the communist regime started the persecution of Falun Gong in July 1999.

Summary of Key Persecution Facts:

Name: Zhang Shixiang (张世祥)
Gender: Male
Age: 66
Address: Zhengzhong Street, Jianyang City, Sichuan Province
Occupation: Retiree of the Jianyang City Department Store
Date of Death: December 4th, 2014
Date of Most Recent Arrest: November 4th, 2008
Most Recent Place of Detention: Wumaping Prison (五马坪监狱)
City: Leshan
Province: Sichuan
Persecution Suffered: Sleep deprivation, brainwashing, forced injections/drug administration, beatings, hung up, imprisonment, home ransacked, interrogation, detention