Cases of Torture against Practitioners in the Qingyang Area, Gansu Province

1. Ms. Cao Qiangqiang's Experience of Being Tortured

Ms. Cao Qiangqiang, 51 years old, was from Xiaojin Village, Xiaojin Town, Xifeng City. On March 2002, Ms. Cao and five other practitioners planned to go to Beijing to appeal on behalf of Falun Dafa. Her husband, poisoned by the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) vicious propaganda against Falun Gong, went to the Xiaojin train station to stop her. He threatened to divorce her and eventually took her to government officials. A law executing officer, Gao Liangqing ordered Ms. Cao's husband to take her home and strictly monitor her.

Two days later, Ms. Cao escaped from her home and went to Beijing to appeal for Falun Dafa. Police officers from Beijing arrested her and took her to the Xifeng Police Station in Beijing. Ms. Cao was detained there for five days before they sent her back to Xiaojin. Vice Director of the Xiaojin Police Station, Fan (first name unknown), made Ms. Cao sit on a stool overnight and then took her to the Xifeng Detention Centre. They locked her up for 30 days. During that time, the guards forced Ms. Cao to go to crowded meetings in schools and government institutes to been seen in public as a "criminal" in order to humiliate her. Ms. Cao was fined 1000 yuan¹ before they released her. Government officials tried to force her to write guarantee statements promising not to practise Falun Gong any longer. Ms. Cao refused and was thus exhibited as a "criminal" in a public area for five hours. They then took her to the Xifeng Drug Rehab Centre and she was tortured by drug abusers.

The Xiaojin Town Police Station forced Ms. Cao's husband to write a guarantee that Ms. Cao would never practise Falun Gong again before they let her go. The police confiscated all her Dafa books from her home. She also had to report to the police every other day and they sent someone to watch her at home.

In June 2000, Ms. Cao was detained for seven days in the brainwashing centre in the Xiaojin Town Kindergarten.

In November 2000, Ms. Cao and other practitioners went to Beijing to appeal for Dafa. The police arrested and locked them in a basement. The police handcuffed and beat her for three days and took all her cash (600 yuan) and belongings. Later she was sent back to the Xifeng Detention Centre and locked up for one month. Zheng Xiang, a guard in the detention centre, often berated and cursed at her.

In January 2001, officer Zhang Zhenghua and officer He (first name unknown) arrested Ms. Cao and locked her in the Xifeng Drug Rehabilitation Centre for seven days. The authorities sentenced her to one year in a forced labour camp. Ms. Cao stood up against this persecutory act with righteous thoughts and the decision was cancelled. However, the police decided to lock her in the rehab centre for seven months. Ms. Cao went on a hunger strike. Four days later, the rehab centre released her on a 1,000 yuan fine fearing that she would die in the centre.

In June 2002, the Xiaojin Town Police Station unlawfully locked Ms. Cao into the Xifeng Drug Rehabilitation Centre for 16 days and extorted 3160 yuan from her as "meal expenses" before they released her.

In February 2003, someone reported Ms. Cao when she distributed leaflets exposing the persecution. The police arrested her and took her to the Zhenyuan County Police Station and kept her overnight without giving her any food or water. Later she was sent to the Xifeng Detention Centre where they kept her for over 40 days and then sentenced her to two years and three months in a forced labour camp. The police didn't inform her family and hence Ms. Cao did not have any extra clothing. On the way to the camp, they tortured her until she vomited and passed out. The camp refused to take her in after they performed a physical examination on her. The police had to take Ms. Cao back to the Xifeng Police Station. Ms. Cao went on a hunger strike for 16 days and she was on the brink of death. The police didn't want to be held responsible for her death and therefore released her.

In April 2004, Ms. Cao was reading Falun Dafa articles at home. Zhang Shaohua, director of the Shaojin Town Police Station, and two other officers broke into her home and started yelling. They even went to the neighbour's house without a warrant trying to search for Falun Gong materials that belonged to Ms. Cao. The police didn't find any materials and took away her Dafa books. From then on, the police went to Ms. Cao's house to harass, monitor, and threaten her periodically. This caused tremendous burden on her family.

2. Dafa Practitioner Ms. He Xuemei's Experience of Being Tortured

Ms. He Xuemei, 52 years old, was from Nanli Village, Xiaojin Town, Xifeng City, Gansu Province. In March 2000, Ms. He and five other practitioners went to Beijing to appeal for Dafa. The Tiananmen Public Safety personnel arrested them and sent them back to their local police station. Officer Miao (first name unknown) beat and kicked Ms. He, handcuffed her onto a big truck and sent her to the Xifeng Detention Centre. They detained her there for one month. Officers from the Xiaojin Police Station tried to force her to write a "guarantee statement" that she would renounce Falun Gong. She refused and police officers handcuffed and brutally beat her. Miao punched Ms. He in the face more than 30 times and smashed her head against the wall many times. She passed out frequently. The police even wanted money from her. In the end, the police locked her in the Xifeng Drug Rehabilitation Centre for 15 days. During that time, the government authorities incited Ms. He's husband to divorce her. The government took her and 16 other Dafa practitioners to public places claiming they were criminals and openly humiliated them. The police called the local TV station to come and make a video in order to distort the facts and to defame Falun Gong.

In April 2004, the local authorities instigated Ms. He's husband to torture her and force her to leave her home. Ms. He begged for food and slept on wood chips and travelled to a practitioner's home in Linjing, Zhenyuan County. The police happened to be at that practitioner's house doing an illegal search and thus arrested her. The police tortured and interrogated her. During the next seven days, she went through tortures in several detention centres before they sent her home.

The CCP instigated Ms. He's husband to torture her in inhumane ways. Her husband beat her many times until she lost consciousness. Ms. He's husband sometimes beat her with an iron rod until she lost control of her bowel movement. One time her husband beat her with a wooden rod until the rod broke and her legs were covered with bruises. He then locked her in a room for five days. Ms. He had to escape from her own home on August 22nd, 2005. Because she didn't have a place to stay, she had to return home in June 2006.

Ms. He Xuemei's home phone number is 86-934-8412520. Her husband's name is Zuo Jiren.

3. Dafa Practitioner Ms. Mao Caizhen's Experience of Being Tortured

Practitioner Ms. Mao Caizhen, 43 years old, was from Xiaojin Village, Xiaojin Town, Gansu Province. She tried to go to Beijing on March 25th, 2000 to appeal for Falun Gong but police officers from the Xiaojin Police Station seized her at the Xi'an Train Station. The police took her back to the Xifeng City Public Safety Bureau and detained her. On April 18th, during the detention, police officers forced 16 Falun Gong practitioners to walk on the streets of Xiaojin Town to publicly display them as "criminals" and humiliate them. On April 25th, the police fined Ms. Mao 1200 yuan and then released her.

On July 3rd, 2000, police officers took Ms. Mao to the Xiaojin Police Station and brutally beat her. On July 24th, 2000, the police arrested Ms. Mao and several practitioners and took them to the brainwashing centre for seven days. They were trying to make them renounce Falun Gong. On November 30th, 2000, Ms. Mao went to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong again. The police from the Xifeng Public Safety office arrested and detained her until December 30th. On January 5th, 2001, the police deceived Ms. Mao into going to the police station. Ms. Mao escaped and had to be homeless to avoid arrest for three months.

On April 5th, 2001, the authorities sentenced Ms. Mao without reason to one year of forced labour at the First Women's Forced Labour Camp in Gansu Province. In the camp, drug abusers Ma Shulin and Liu Ping often beat and slandered Ms. Mao. Guards Fan Yirong and Ma Wei hung Ms. Mao up into the air with handcuffs without her feet touching the ground for seven consecutive days attempting to force her to renounce Falun Gong. Guard Fan Yirong beat her with a leather belt until she passed out. Fan would take her down until she regained consciousness and then continued the torture. Fan also ordered another guard to beat Ms. Mao until she was badly injured. This happened three times. In the camp, Ms. Mao received half a piece of bread per meal. Once she was forced to stand up around the clock for three months. After she served her term in the camp, the guards kept her for another 42 days before they let her go home.

In March 2004, three officers went to Ms. Mao's home to harass, search her home and interrogate her.

4. Practitioner Ms. Zhi Xiqin's Experience of Being Tortured

Ms. Shi Xiqin, 62 years old, was from Licheng Village, Xiaojin Town, Xifeng City. She started practising Falun Dafa in August 1998. In March 2000, Shi and five other practitioners planed to go to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong. On their way, officer Zhang Zhenghua stopped them at the Xi'an Train Station. Zhang took 100 yuan from Ms. Shi and sent her back to the Xiaojin Police Station. There they handcuffed her overnight, and then sent her to the Xifeng Detention Centre for one month. Zhang also fined her 1200 yuan. During this time, Ms. Shi was taken to meetings and humiliated in public as a "criminal." The police used high volume speakers to openly slander Falun Gong.

From May 2000 to January 2001, the authorities arrested Ms. Shi three times and sent her to different brainwashing centres.

In May 2000, Ms. Shi was taken to the Xiaojin Town Culture Station second floor where she was being tortured.

In November 2000, Ms. Shi and another practitioner went to Beijing to appeal for Falun Dafa. The Beijing Yongwai Police Station arrested and detained her. Ms. Shi was left on a small stool in an office for four consecutive days without being given any food or water. Her physical condition was deteriorating and the police released her.

In January 2001, officers Shao Jun and He Guohua illegally arrested her and sent her to the Xiaojin Kindergarten Brainwashing Centre again.

On July 26th, 2001, Ms. Shi was at home with other practitioners. Officer Shao Jun, He Guohua, and Jin Jianxun arrested them and exposed them to the baking sun for over six hours. The police officers took their money and sent them to the Xifeng Detention Centre. Police officers beat them brutally and locked them in the detention centre for one month. Ms. Shi was homeless for a month after she was released in order to avoid being arrested again. Later, police officers arrested her again and sent her to the Xifeng Drug Rehab Centre and detained her there for 40 days. Ms. Shi was sentenced to one year of forced labour at the Lanzhou Forced Labour Camp.

In the Camp, Ms. Shi was once hung upside down and beaten for eight consecutive days. She had to stand facing the wall for three months another time. The camp forced her to do heavy physical work for which she did not have the strength and thus she passed out many times. When Shi's term was over on July 26th, 2002, the police used the excuse that she had not written a guarantee statement to renounce Falun Gong and therefore, they took her to the Xifeng Drug Rehabilitation Centre for brainwashing. Ms. Shi was physically weak and often vomited. She didn't eat for eight days and started to pass out a lot. When police officers saw that her life was in danger, they released her to avoid being held responsible for her death.

On September 4th, 2002, when Ms. Shi was in bed recovering from the torture, eight officers from the Xiaojin Town Police Station, including Zhang Shaohua and Fan Zhe forcefully dragged her to the police station. Officer Zheng Xiang slapped her and humiliated her with vicious words and they kept her there for one day.

On the morning of March 26th, 2003, officer Liu Hongwei noticed that Ms. Shi and another practitioner were distributing truth clarification materials. Ms. Shi was able to get away but the other practitioner didn't. Under pressure, this practitioner provided the police with Ms. Shi's whereabouts. The police arrested Ms. Shi and interrogated her for eight hours. In the end, the police took her to the Xifeng Detention Centre and detained her there for three months. Afterward, Ms. Shi was sentenced to two years and six months forced labour.

Before Ms. Shi was taken to a forced labour camp, guard Yang Zhengkui beat her and tortured her. Ms. Shi wasn't even given time to get ready and pack her clothes before she was taken to the Lanzhou Second Forced Labour Camp. While in the camp, Ms. Shi was forced to do intensive heavy work, forced to stand for a long time, deprived of sleep, and wasn't allowed to use the toilet. Guards instigated drug abusers to humiliate her. Captain Xia (first name unknown) viciously beat her many times and caused her to lose consciousness. Ms. Shi was released in August 2005.

Note

1. "Yuan" is the Chinese currency; 500 yuan is equal to the average monthly income of an urban worker in China.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2007/1/1/145883.html