October 12, 2005
A Chinese policeman in a blue uniform ties up a bloodied and bruised female
prisoner. He then holds up a thick wooden stick and readies himself to beat her
once again. Pedestrians stop in astonishment and curiosity to watch what will
happen next.
This could be an act of real torture happening in China, but today it is only a
reenactment taking place on 59th Street and Fifth Avenue in New York City
courtesy of the Falun Gong.
The Falun Gong is an organization of Chinese origin which in its own words is
dedicated to improving the mind, body and spirit by means of meditation,
exercise and teachings that are rooted in ancient Chinese culture. The Falun
Gong estimates itself to have over a hundred million followers, with seventy
million in China alone.
Over the years the Chinese government has sought to limit the influence of the
Falun Gong seeing it as a challenger to its authority and some Falun Gong
[practitioners] have been arrested and imprisoned.
But recently the Falun Gong has attacked the Chinese government accusing it of
torturing its [practitioners], especially women and girls. To make its case
clear, the Falun Gong have begun reenacting torture scenes from Chinese prisons
and labor camps on the streets of major American cities.
[...]
The live reenactments of Chinese police torture are usually made by volunteer
[practitioners] of the Falun Gong, and in the case of the scene described above,
by members from the Republic of China in Taiwan. The amateur actors use make up
and food coloring to simulate blood. One sits in a cross legged position in a
tiny wooden cage with blood on her forehead and shirt. Near by, a sign with the
caption, "small cell," explains the means of torture more completely.
While the live reenactment of torture is happening, a friendly female member of
the organization distributes the newspaper, Falun Gong Today which contains
articles that describe in the minutest detail the torture endured by female
Falun Gong [practitioners] in China.
One article entitled "Women Hung Spread-Eagle, Sexually Assaulted with
Sticks," explains how Chinese prison officials torture female Falun Gong
detainees by hanging them spread-eagle from the ceiling and then shoving sticks
and rods, pepper oil, chili pepper sauce, toilet and shoe brushes and other
items into the women's vaginas.
Another article lists the methods of torture used on women, including: electric
shock clubs applied to the breasts and the genitals, piercing through the
nipples with wire, being forced to stand naked in front of onlookers, gang rape,
and being stripped and locked into male cells.
When the newspapers begin to run out, a Falun Gong truck arrives on the scene to
deliver more newspapers and supplies to the Falun Gong volunteers.
One of the volunteers on the scene is Kathrina, a [practitioner] of the Falun
Gong from Sweden who journeyed all the way to New York on her holiday to
distribute newspapers and information about the Falun Gong. Explaining the
importance of her work, she said, "The government and media do not talk
about torture in China because of economic interests. That is why we are here
today. We are asking people to sign a petition to pressure the Chinese
government."
[...]
All content published on this website is copyrighted by Minghui.org. Minghui will produce compilations of its online content regularly and on special occasions.
Category: Falun Dafa in the Media
