(Minghui.org) A group of friends were reading Falun Gong books at a private home in Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province, when the police broke in and arrested them.

Ms. Zhang Yawen

One of the Falun Gong practitioners, Ms. Zhang Yawen from nearby Fuyu County, Jilin Province, saw her arrest formally approved on March 25, which means that she now faces indictment for refusing to give up her faith.

Arrested during Chinese New Year Holiday

On the tenth day of the 2016 Chinese New Year, Ms. Zhang traveled about 60 miles to visit her friend Ms. Sun Fengxia, also a practitioner, in Harbin City. The two had planned to spend the holiday with other practitioners in the area reading Falun Gong books together.

Officers Zheng Xiaodong and Yu Yongjiang from the Jianzu Police Precinct in Harbin appeared at Ms. Sun's home. Zheng called the Xiangfang District Police Department to report that several Falun Gong practitioners were at Ms. Sun's home.

An hour later, officers from the National Security Division of the Xiangfang District Police Department arrived in four cars. They ransacked Ms. Sun's apartment and took Ms. Zhang, Ms. Sun, and the other practitioners to the Harbin No. 2 Detention Center.

Home Ransacked, Daughter Interrogated

At 10 p.m. that night, Deng Xuesong, the director of the police department, personally searched Ms. Zhang's apartment. Ms. Zhang's daughter was at home alone when he came to the door. Deng and his crew tried to break in. When that failed, they ordered Ms. Zhang's neighbor to knock on the door. Ms. Zhang's daughter was deceived and opened the door. The policemen forced their way in and searched the premises.

They ordered Ms. Zhang's daughter to go back to her own apartment, accompanied her, and ransacked her apartment, too. They confiscated two personal computers, a tablet, a camera, and four cell phones. Two phones were later returned.

That was not the end of the ordeal. Deng detained Ms. Zhang's daughter and son in-law for interrogation. When Ms. Zhang's daughter did not answer him quickly enough, Deng kicked her and threatened her with arrest.

One Year of Forced Labor

Ms. Zhang started to practice Falun Gong in 1992, and benefited from Falun Gong both physically and mentally. As a very capable sales manager of a local bank in Fuyu County, she was a candidate for bank director. She had a happy family life, as well.

After July 1999 when Jiang Zemin started the persecution against Falun Gong, she went to Beijing to protest. Upon her return, the bank forced her to take an early retirement, even though she was not even 50 years old yet.

In 2008 when she was distributing materials exposing the persecution at a supermarket, she was arrested. The arresting officer said that if she gave him 10,000 yuan, he would release her. Ms. Zhang did not have such a large amount of money, so she was sent to forced labor for one year.

During her detention, her mother, in her eighties, was left alone at home. Her daughter had to resign from her job to care for her grandmother.

Person responsible for the persecution:Yuan Zhaoxiang, the chief of National Security Division of Xiangfang District Police Department: +86-13604885769Wang Dianbin, policeman: +86-15104690118Zheng Xiaodong, the associate director of Jiangzu Police Precinct in Ha'rbin: +86-13351861515

(for more names, please refer to the Chinese version)