(Clearwisdom.net) Mr. Li Zhigang, 36, was a Ph.D. student from the National University of Defense Technology in Changsha City, Hunan Province. He was recognized as a good, kind person. Since July 2000, when the persecution of Falun Dafa began, Mr. Li has been brutally persecuted because he has refused to renounce his belief in Falun Dafa. Early on in the persecution, Li was jailed in a forced labor camp for 18 months. One year after he was released, he was sentenced to five years in prison. Li is currently being jailed at the Dejin City Prison detention center in Hunan Province.

How Mr. Li Zhigang is being persecuted:

1. At the Beijing Military Area Command Detention Center: In August 2002, Mr. Li was illegally detained by officials from the National University of Defense Technology in Changsha City, Hunan Province. After five months of detention, in January 2003, he was sent to Beijing Military Procuratorate and jailed at the Beijing Military Area Command Detention Center. Mr. Li spent more than eight months there, and the authorities secretly put him on trial twice. Between July 2 and September 22, 2003, Mr. Li was not allowed to take a bath, brush his teeth or wash his face. He was forced to sit without moving for 16 hours per day. Furthermore, the guards often viciously beat him. Sometimes three or four people took turns striking his face, causing the teeth along his left jaw to loosen. Li suffers chronic headaches due to the beatings, and he still cannot chew on the left side of his mouth. One time the guards handcuffed Mr. Li for six consecutive days and nights. They did not remove the handcuffs even when he was fed, needed to sleep, or had to use a toilet. Moreover, they did not give him enough food to eat. He often was very hungry. Mr. Li's work unit had stopped paying him any money, yet he needed to pay a 15-yuan meal fee per day.

2. In the Chenzhou Military Prison, Hunan Province: In September 2003, Li Zhigang was transferred from the Beijing Military Area Command Detention Center to the Chenzhou Military Prison in Hunan Province. Between September 23, 2003 and May 14, 2004, they illegally jailed him there for more than eight months. Since he still refused to give up his belief in Falun Dafa, Mr. Li was twice put in solitary confinement. During those two periods, he was not allowed to contact anyone outside the prison, and no one was allowed to visit him.

The first solitary confinement was between November 30, 2003 and February 13, 2004. Mr. Li spent the entire winter locked up in a small cell. The cell was actually a cage that was less than 2 square meters in size. The cage was outdoors, and had no roof. It did not provide any shelter from rain or snow. Furthermore, when the weather became cold, the jail warden ordered that Mr. Li's winter jackets be removed, so he was often freezing.

Inside the cage, Mr. Li could not rest at night. During the day, he was forced to perform heavy labor in isolation, such as using a shoulder pole to carry buckets of manure. Guards were assigned specifically to watch him constantly. They still did not give him enough food. Sometimes, he only received a steamed bun or a small bowl of porridge. Li Zhigang is 1.86 meters tall (over 6 feet). During the 75 days he was locked in the small cell, he was not allowed to bathe or change clothes. Between April 28 and May 11, 2004, Mr. Li was put into a small cell for the second time, totaling 14 days. This time the cell was even smaller than the previous one. He had to urinate and defecate in the cell. Since the floor was sunken in the middle, the urine could not drain out. The temperature was more than 30 degrees Celsius (over 85 degrees Fahrenheit) during those days. The stench from urine was terrible, and maggots were growing in it. Furthermore, Li had to endure flies and mosquitoes. He could not sleep, sit, or stand with any degree of comfort in the cell. Under such extreme conditions, Mr. Li could not eat any food. When he was released from the cell 14 days later, he no longer looked like a man. He had lost over 16 lbs in the 14 days. Since he did not have a bowel movement during all that time, he had severe prolapse of the anus. He had great difficulty standing or walking, but he was still forced to perform heavy labor. He finally collapsed. On May 14, 2004, Li Zhigang was transferred to a prison for civilians -- the Jinshi Prison of Hunan Province.

3. Jinshi Prison, Hunan Province: Mr. Li Zhigang has been jailed at Jinshi Prison for eight months now. Although Jinshi Prison is a civilian prison, it is still under the control of the National University of Defense Technology in Changsha City. Together, members of those two organizations continue to persecute Mr. Li. During the first two weeks he was there, he was deprived of sleep. Even now, Mr. Li is able to sleep two to three hours less than other inmates. During the hottest months of this summer, he was locked in a room that was completely sealed. He was not allowed to step out of the room, and its windows were all shut tight.

Since October, the military has often sent people to the prison who have tried to brainwash and coerce Li Zhigang into renouncing Falun Dafa. They even established a special team to continue the pressure. The team consists of officers from the General Political Department of the People's Liberation Army, National University of Defense Technology in Changsha City, Jinshi Prison, and two collaborators (a doctor from Shijiazhuang Military Police with the surname of Shen and a woman just released from Changsha Women Prison named Xiaoli). These people take turns every day attempting to brainwash Li Zhigang. The army officers even proposed spending as much time with Mr. Li as possible, including eating and sleeping. They will use all means in their attempts to force Mr. Li to renounce the practice of Falun Dafa.

National University of Defense Technology in Changsha City
Main Switchboard: 86-731-4575601
Administration Office: 86-731-4518563
Chancellor Office: 86-731-4514991

Jinshi Prison of Hunan Province
Main Switchboard: 86-736-4222289
Office: 86-736-4298220,86-736-4298214
Political Department: 86-736-4298215
Administration Department: 86-736-4298009
Admission Unit: 86-736-4298179
Discipline Unit: 86-736-4298113
Sub-unit: 86-736-4298364