(Minghui.org) The Beijing Women’s Prison claims that it operates humanely, but in reality it is very inhumane. The prison personnel has even persecuted handicapped Falun Gong practitioners.
Disabled Ms. Chen Fengxian Tortured
Ms. Chen Fengxian, in her 60s, lived in the Chaoyang District of Beijing. She worked as a Russian translator and had a leg disability.
For her belief in Falun Gong, Ms. Chen was severely persecuted in the Beijing Forced Labor Camp, where she was routinely kicked, exposed to extreme cold and scorching sun for prolonged periods, and deprived of sleep. Because she refused to renounce her faith, her term was extended for 10 months.
In 2009, after her release from the labor camp, Ms. Chen was sentenced to eight years in prison.
Ms. Chen was held in Ward No. 8 (now No. 6) in the Beijing Women’s Prison. She persisted in her belief and refused to be “transformed” or acknowledge being a criminal. As a result, warden Zhang Haina ordered guards and criminal inmates to torture and humiliate her day and night.
The guards often took Ms. Chen to a restroom that had no monitors and beat her up.
Ms. Chen was also frequently forced to sit on a small stool without moving for a long time. She was not allowed to sleep. They would hit her as soon as she closed her eyes.
Torture illustration: sitting still on a small stool for prolonged period
At the end of 2009, the prison intensified its efforts to brainwash practitioners. Zhang Haina forbade Ms. Chen to go to the restroom, forced her to sleep on the ground in cold winter, ordered her to clean the bathrooms, and hassled her in various ways.
Zhang also forbade her to contact her family and withheld all mail from them, and did not allow Ms. Chen to buy any daily necessities, including tissues. When someone tried to give her some tissues, they were stopped by the guards.
In the winter, the prison did not issue Ms. Chen winter clothes, but gave her only a light shirt. They then locked her in a room with open windows in order to freeze her.
To protest the persecution, Ms. Chen refused to address the guards with “Sir” or “Madam.” To punish her, Zhang forbade her to use the restroom.
Ms. Chen was forced to use a basin for urination; however, the guards instigated an inmate to throw her basin away. Having no other choice, Ms. Chen then used her lunch box. Soon, however, the inmate threw it away, too.
Afterward, the prison would not give her lunch because she did not have a lunch box. Sometimes they only gave her a mouthful of bun or rice. If she did not say, “Sir, I want to eat,” they would not give her anything at all.
While Ms. Chen was detained at the prison, her 80-year-old mother passed away. She was not able to say goodbye.
Ms. Wen Yuhong Paralyzed by Police, Then Sent to Prison
Ms. Wen Yuhong, 57, is a farmer from Huanghua Township, Huairou City, Beijing. She sold tofu to support her family. While she had been in great health since she started practicing Falun Gong, she was paralyzed by police.
Officers from the Huangkan Police Station in Huairou City and the 610 Office rushed into Ms. Wen’s home in March 2004 and illegally arrested her. The police hit her and knocked her to the ground several times. They also threw her against the door frame.
When Ms. Wen fainted, several policemen dragged her over the steps, with her back being violently knocked against the hard surface. As a result, her spine was injured and she became paralyzed.
Torture Illustration: dragging
The court sentenced Ms. Wen to four years in prison, and the Beijing Women’s Prison accepted her. She was carried into the prison and taken to Ward No. 19, where she was cruelly persecuted.
The guards instigated criminal inmate Li Xiaomei and others to abuse Ms. Wen.
Because she was not able to take care of herself, she needed people to carry her, even to the restroom. The prison then pressured her to write a thank-you note to the prison and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Ms. Wen was released after enduring four years of torture. She was still paralyzed and spent half a year being treated by doctors. She then resumed practicing Falun Gong, and her health recovered within a few months. Soon she was on her feet again and resumed selling tofu to support her family.
In November 2011, the 610 Office arrested Ms. Wen again. She was given a forced labor term of two years.
Ms. Wen is currently detained in the Daxing Women’s Forced Labor Camp in Beijing. Her health has deteriorated again.
Handicapped Practitioners Forced to Do Slave Labor
Ms. Sun Jingping, from the Shijingshan area in Beijing, had suffered from polio prior to practicing Falun Gong. She was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2003 for distributing flyers with facts about Falun Gong; authorities accused her of “attempting to spread false information.” She was in her 30s.
Ms. Sun was incarcerated in Ward No. 10 of the Beijing Women’s Prison. Warden Zheng Yumei forced her to do slave labor exceeding her capacity. The work included packaging chopsticks and making cake boxes.
Ms. Wang Liyun, a practitioner from the Tongzhou District of Beijing, is missing one leg. She was arrested in 2008 for distributing Falun Gong informational materials and sentenced to seven years in prison.
Ms. Wang was detained in Ward No. 4 (now No. 3) of the Beijing Women’s Prison, where she was subjected to brainwashing and slave labor. She was pushed into the shop in her wheelchair to package chopsticks and make envelopes every day. Even though she was disabled, the quota assigned to her was no different from that of other inmates.
Ms. Lin Ruihua was in her 50s when she was sentenced to three years in prison for her belief in Falun Gong. Although one of her legs was disabled, she was also sent to the Beijing Women’s Prison, where she endured much suffering.
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