(Minghui.org) Nine Falun Gong practitioners in Xingtai City, Hebei Province were sent to the Xingtai City Brainwashing Center between June and August 2020, where they were ordered to renounce their faith.
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
According to information collected by Minghui.org, 553 Falun Gong practitioners have been sent to the brainwashing center, known as "Xingtai City Home of Care and Love" to the outside, in the past two decades.
The guards torture practitioners in different ways in attempts to force them to renounce their faith. Their techniques include beatings, sleep deprivation, force-feeding, intensive brainwashing, and the use of nerve-damaging drugs.
Xingtai City Brainwashing Center
Ms. Xia Yunsheng Sent to Brainwashing Center Twice in Two Weeks
Ms. Xia Yunsheng, 54, was arrested at work on July 29, 2020, by seven police officers. She was sent straight to the brainwashing center. Three other officers ransacked Ms. Xia’s home right after her arrest but didn’t find any Falun Gong-related materials.
Upon learning of Ms. Xia’s arrest, her husband rushed to the brainwashing center and demanded her release.
Although the authorities allowed Ms. Xia to go home with her husband when he returned to the brainwashing center the next morning, they arrested her at home again on August 13, 2020, and took her back to the brainwashing center.
This isn’t the first time that Ms. Xia has been persecuted for her faith. She was fired by her workplace and forced to live away from home in October 2001. She was sentenced to three years in Hebei Province Women’s Prison following her arrest in May 2004.
Two Neighbors Sent to Brainwashing Center Twice in One Month
Ms. Yang Yanqiu was arrested on February 4, 2020, for putting up posters about Falun Gong. Although the police released her a day later, she was placed under surveillance and not allowed to freely go anywhere.
Ms. Yang’s neighbor, Ms. Huo Guiqin, in her 50s, was also arrested on March 17, 2020, for posting informational stickers about the persecution of Falun Gong. Her home was ransacked. She was later released on bail.
In June 2020, the police sent both practitioners to the brainwashing center and detained them there for several days. Weeks later, the practitioners were sent back to the brainwashing center in mid-July and held there for two more weeks.
Both practitioners were once deprived of sleep for three days. The collaborators (people assigned to do the brainwashing of practitioners) attacked Falun Gong and attempted to force Ms. Yang and Ms. Huo to sign prepared letters renouncing their faith. The police threatened Ms. Huo that her daughter would lose her job if she refused to sign the letter.
One Practitioner Sent to Brainwashing Center While Two Left Home
Ms. Liu Guangyu, Ms. Liu Xizhen, and Ms. Wang Sanni, all residents of Xingtai County (which is under the administration of Xingtai City), were harassed in June 2020. The three practitioners were previously arrested together in September 2018 while hanging banners with information about Falun Gong. They were each sentenced to eight months in prison and released in April 2019.
The police came back to the three practitioners’ homes on July 20, 2020, and attempted to take them to the brainwashing center. While Ms. Wang and Ms. Liu Xizheng left home to avoid further persecution, Ms. Liu Guangyu was sent to the brainwashing center by her daughter, who was pressured by the authorities.
Three Practitioners from Same Village Sent to Brainwashing Center
Ms. Zheng Jingzi, Ms. Zhang Xiying, and Ms. Yan Xiaobai, all from Dongyin Village, Longyao County, Xingtai City, were taken to the Xingtai City Brainwashing Center around 8:00 p.m. on July 21, 2020.
Officials attempted to force the practitioners to renounce their faith by threatening to force their children or grandchildren out of jobs or schools.
More Practitioners Harassed and Threatened
Other practitioners who were taken to the brainwashing center recently include Ms. Hu Hui and a practitioner from Sansi Township.
Ms. Wei Qingmei, four practitioners from Sansi Township, Nanhe County and two practitioners from Linxi County (which is under the administration of Xingtai City) were also harassed.
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