(Minghui.org) Mr. Qiu An, an electronics store owner in Kunming City, Yunnan Province, did not know much about Falun Gong until 2006.
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a mind-body practice centered on the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance that has been demonized and persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since July 1999.
Mr. Qiu heard about the practice from his friends and, after reading Zhuan Falun as well as other teachings, he found that Falun Gong was nothing like how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has depicted it. Instead, the practice promotes improved physical health and helps people become better citizens. Therefore, Mr. Qiu also began to practice Falun Gong.
But he did not expect that his belief and talking to others about the practice would bring him detention, beating and humiliation, as he experienced in December 2018.
Mr. Qiu was arrested on December 11 and held in custody for more than a day, during which time he was brutally beaten. A medical examination concluded that the physical abuse he suffered at the hands of the police had caused broken bones.
Below was a testimony from Mr. Qiu, 46, in his letter to Zhou Jianzhong, director of the Kunming Police Department.
“At about 4 p.m. on December 11, 2018, a customer named Zhou You came to my store to purchase a charging cord. I chatted with him about Falun Gong and gave him a card which has information to get around the internet blockade to view overseas news. When he left, I also handed him a small booklet about Falun Gong.
“About half an hour later, two police officer rushed into the store. One officer showed me the card and booklet, asking if I had distributed them. By then Zhou You also came in to testify against me. Two more police officer arrived and they took me to the Xiaobanqiao Police Station.
“At the police station, I was forced to stand until evening. Three officers then came to verify my name. They handcuffed my hands behind my back. The handcuff was tight and it hurt my wrists. They took me back to my store. On the way there they humiliated me and said they planned to search the store upon arrival. Because they did not have a search warrant, I refused to open the door. They contacted the landlord and then got my wife to open the door. Although they did not find anything they were looking for, they took me back to the police station for interrogation.
“At about 2:00 a.m., they tried to take a photo of me as well as take my fingerprints and blood sample. Since I had not done anything wrong, I refused to yield. One officer took off my glasses and spayed pepper spray in my eyes. Two other officers knocked me to the ground, while another officer hit me hard with a baton.
“I was hit all over my back including my spine, right arm, as well as my bottom and thigh. It was extremely painful. The first officer stepped hard on my head and continued spraying me with pepper spray. After he finished one bottle of pepper spray, he took another bottle and continued while humiliating me.
“In the end, the police managed to have my picture taken, fingerprints pressed, and blood drawn. When I asked why my biometric information was needed, one of the officers replied, 'organ harvesting!'
“After taking me back to the interrogation room, the police forced me to sit until the next morning. One officer threatened me not to hire an attorney. As they planned to take me to a detention center, I requested to see my family. After a long time, my wife and sister come and they were surprised to see me in such pain and unable to open my eyes. After I told them the officers had beaten me and pepper sprayed me, my sister knelt down and begged them not to do it anymore.
“When an officer took me to Xingyao Hospital for an examination, an X-ray indicated that part of my pelvis had become detached and some of my ribs were broken. My eyes also needed an anesthetic rinse. The officer took me to another hospital to confirm the result before driving me to the Kunming Detention Center.
“A doctor at the detention center refused to accept me because of my injuries. After being taken back to the police station, I was released at about 10:00 p.m.”
Mr. Qiu said that he used to fight with people often and it was Falun Gong that changed him into a better person. He said he was fortunate to know the real story of the practice and become a practitioner, and he firmly believes that everyone, as well as society in general, could benefit from Falun Gong.
He added that freedom of belief is granted by Article 36 of the Chinese Constitution and that the police officers' actions had violated Article 22 of Chinese Police Law, which stipulates that police officers are not allowed “to unlawfully deprive other people of, or restrict, their freedom of the person, or illegally search a person, his or her belongings, residence or place” or “to beat up another or instigate another to do so.”