(Minghui.org) When Ms. Li Fenyu was released from Jiangxi Province Women's Forced Labor Camp on September 24, 2013, she was in fragile condition, weighing only 88 lbs (40kg). It was the fourth time she had been sent to a labor camp for her belief in Falun Gong.
Ms. Li has spent over eight years in labor camps since the persecution of Falun Gong began. Relentless torture and brainwashing had pushed her to verge of collapse several times, yet she still refused to renounce her faith. The authorities had confiscated everything from her home, and her son and daughter became homeless as a result of the persecution.
Ms. Li Fenyu
Ms. Li Fenyu, 56, is from Nanchang County of Jiangxi Province. Her husband passed away at 39 years old, leaving her with their son, daughter and a large amount of debt. Her life was turned upside down.
When she started practicing Falun Gong in May 1997, her health was quickly restored and she had new hope for the future.
Appeals in Beijing Met with Arrest
Dark clouds reformed as her cherished practice came under attack by the Communist regime, with the nationwide launch of the persecution in July 1999. To stand up for justice, Ms. Li went to Beijing to appeal on March 9, 2000. She was arrested at the train station and detained at the local detention center. She went on a hunger strike and was released on April 30, 2000.
She returned to Beijing with other practitioners to appeal again on May 9, 2000. For holding up a banner, she was arrested and detained at Xuanwu Detention Center in Beijing. She was sent back to her hometown and detained at local detention center until her release on May 17, 2000, after she went on a hunger strike for 9 days.
She was arrested again at her home on July 20, 2000. She had done nothing to trigger the arrest, but it is likely that the arrest was made to prevent her from appealing, as it took place on the one-year anniversary of the persecution. She was detained for 15 days.
On October 6, 2000, she went to Beijing again and was arrested for distributing informational materials at Tiananmen Square. The police took her back to her hometown. At that time, there were so many Falun Gong practitioners going to Beijing to appeal the persecution that the detention centers could not hold them.
1st Labor Camp Detention, for One Year
Ms. Li Fenyu was arrested at the end of December 2000 and was sentenced to one year of forced labor at Jiangxi Province Women's Labor Camp. She was detained in a 6-square-meter cell, which she had to share with two others. They had to eat, drink, and relieve themselves in the same small cell, and it smelled terribly.
In March 2001, prisoner He Yun found clothing with words that exposed the persecution written on them and which were hidden in Ms. Li's bedding. To retaliate, the guard handcuffed and restrained Ms. Li on the “death bed.” She went on a hunger strike for three days.
2nd Labor Camp Detention
Ms. Li went back to her parents' home in Sichuan Province after she was released. On October 26, 2001, she went to Beijing with other practitioners and unfolded a banner that read, “Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good” and “ Falun Dafa is good!”
She was detained in Beijing and then sent to Jianxi Province Detention Center. She was put in heavy shackles for more than 20 days.
In February 2002, Ms. Li went back to her parents' home to visit her daughter. On March 21, she was arrested when she was working on her parents' farm. She was sentenced to two years of forced labor at Nanbusi Women's Labor Camp.
In the labor camp she was tortured in various ways, including being forced to stand against the wall for a long time and kicked if she moved even slightly.
In October 2002, labor camp personnel beat her from 7 a.m. to midnight in attempt to force her to give up her belief in Falun Gong.
Her legs were put in the legs double-crossed meditation position and tied tightly. At the same time, she was forced to hold a broom above her head. The prisoners beat her when they saw her arms move. She was tortured this way from midnight until 4 p.m. the next day, about 16 hours.
The guards also tried to force her to slander the founder of Falun Gong. Ms. Li refused and was forced to kneel for 4 or 5 hours.
She was forced to drink 8 glasses of water every day and was not allowed to use the bathroom from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. If she could not hold it and relieved herself in her pants, she was fined 20 yuan each time.
The labor camp also denied her family members any visitation. Ms. Li's mother went to give her some clothes, but was not allowed to see her or give her the clothes.
3rd Labor Camp Detention, Three-Year Sentence
In July 2005, Ms. Li Fenyu was sentenced to three years at Jiangxi Women's Labor Camp. Her family members were not allowed to visit her.
She was forced to make rubber gloves. The working conditions were poor and they had to work for more than 10 hours every day. They had to use talcum powder which caused allergic reactions, making Ms. Li to cough and her nose to bleed.
In May 2006, Ms. Li was isolated and monitored 24 hours a day, every day.
Lu Xiuying and other guards brainwashed her and forced her to watch video programs that slandered Falun Gong.
For more than 20 days, she was subjected to brainwashing until after midnight. She had to get up at 5 a.m. to clean the floors. She was sleep deprived and exhausted.
The authorities also forced her 16-year-old daughter to come and pressure her to give up her belief in Falun Gong. Ms. Li was on the verge of mental and physical collapse.
4th Labor Camp Detention, Two-Year Sentence
On September 25, 2011, Ms. Li was arrested again because she distributed Shen Yun Performing Arts DVDs. She was sentenced to 2 years of forced labor at Jiangxi Women's Labor Camp.
She was tortured with forced standing for the whole day until midnight in May 2012.
On the evening of May 15, 2012, guard Lu Xiuying went into the cell and dragged Ms. Li out by her hair. She then slammed Ms. Li's shoulders against the wall.
In August 2012, Ms. Li was again forced to stand still for the entire day because she did not shout “report” when she walked out of the cell. Guard Xu Yanping grabbed Ms. Li's shirt collar and pulled her outside to stand in the hot sun.
On September 24, 2013, when Ms. Li was finally released, she had survived more than eight years of torture and abuse.
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Category: Torture of Women
