After Nearly Ten Years of Incarceration and Torture for His Faith, Former Chengdu Teacher Arrested Again
(Minghui.org) Having spent eight years in prison and one year in a forced labor camp for practicing Falun Gong, Mr. Yuan Bin, a former middle school biology teacher, was incarcerated again for seeking justice for his sister, who was arrested for removing a propaganda poster slandering their shared faith.
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual and meditation discipline based on the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance. It has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Mr. Yuan Bin
Mr. Yuan, in his 50s, resides in Chengdu, Sichuan Province. He was seized by officers from Luodai Town Police Station on January 24, 2019 and has been kept in custody since.
His latest arrest was triggered by his efforts to rescue his sister, Ms. Yuan Xuefen, 55, and Mr. Wen Juping, 68, both of whom are Falun Gong practitioners. Ms. Yuan and Mr. Wen were arrested in Luodai Town (about 12 miles from downtown Chengdu) on May 21, 2018 for removing a poster attacking Falun Gong and replacing it with one about the communist regime’s persecution of the spiritual practice.
Ms. Yuan was sent to Chengdu City Detention Center that evening and put in criminal detention the next day. Her arrest was approved on June 28, 2018.
Mr. Wen's detention location remains to be investigated.
Ms. Yuan's family hired a lawyer to represent her. While Mr. Yuan worked with the lawyer to seek justice for her, police began targeting Mr. Yuan. He found officers hiding outside his family's home when he returned to Luodai Town to visit them. The police also put up a wanted poster of him around town.
Repeatedly Persecuted for His Faith in the Past 20 Years
For not giving up his faith, Mr. Yuan has been repeatedly arrested in the past 20 years. He was fired from his workplace. His wife divorced him after being unable to bear the mental and financial pressure caused by the persecution. His daughter, who was only 9 when he was imprisoned, was bullied and humiliated by others.
Mr. Yuan was subjected to non-stop, brutal torture during his eight years' imprisonment and one year in the forced labor camp. He was also sent to brainwashing centers three times in the authorities’ attempts to force him to renounce his faith.
As a result of the intensive physical torture he suffered in custody, he looked much older than his age. His hair turned gray, his teeth fell out, and his vision was blurred. He developed problems and frequent pain in many of his joints. He is unable to lift his right arm due to frozen shoulder, which severely affects his daily activities.