(Minghui.org) 2,054 incidents of Falun Gong practitioners being arrested or harassed for their faith were reported in September and October 2022.
Out of the 2,054 newly-reported incidents, 659 were arrests, including 34 cases that took place in 2021, 248 between January and August 2022, and 377 in September and October 2022. The 1,395 harassment cases included 8 in 2021, 310 from January to August 2022, and 1,077 between September and October 2022.
The newly-confirmed cases brought the total number of arrests and harassments reported in the first ten months of the year to 3,127 and 3,462, respectively. Due to strict information censorship in China, these incidents often are not reported in a timely manner, nor is further information readily available.
The Chinese Communist Party’s 20th Party Congress was held between October 16 and 22, 2022. The number of arrests and incidents of harassment of Falun Gong practitioners began to escalate months before, beginning in July. Compared to the combined 564 arrest and harassment cases in June, the total recorded cases in July (1,039) almost doubled. Between July and October, a total of 2,202 harassment cases were confirmed, which was 1.74 times the number of 1,260 incidents reported in the first half of the year.
Among the newly-confirmed cases of persecution in September and October 2022, six provinces registered triple-digit cases, including Hebei (441), Shandong (295), Sichuan (188), Heilongjiang (184), Jilin (139), and Hubei (139). Eighteen other provinces or municipalities had cases in the double-digits and three regions had single-digit cases. The location of one harassment case wasn’t known.
A total of 211 of the targeted practitioners were 60 or older at the time their cases were confirmed, including 62 in their 60s, 101 in their 70s, 44 in their 80s, and 4 in their 90s. Many of the practitioners were professionals, including government agency directors, professors, doctors, an engineer, and an interior designer.
Harassment Prior to the Chinese Communist Party’s 20th Congress
From northern provinces such as Liaoning, Jilin, and Hebei, to municipalities including Beijing, Shanghai, and Chongqing, as well as southwestern provinces including Sichuan and Yunnan, the authorities harassed Falun Gong practitioners by ordering them to stay home, ordering them to sign statements to renounce their faith, or taking them to brainwashing centers in the months leading up to the 20th Party Congress.
During most of the harassment incidents, the police took photos of the practitioners against their will. If the targeted practitioners weren’t home, the police took photos of their family members instead, as well as the exterior of their homes.
Some officers tore down Falun Gong decorations at the practitioners’ homes. Some deceived the practitioners by saying that they came to check their Health Code (an e-passport type of application that tracks one’s travel history and potential exposure to COVID-19), but left without checking those of family members.
When practitioners refused to comply, authorities threatened to take away jobs, pensions, and the future of their children and grandchildren. This brought tremendous mental distress to practitioner families and caused much discord.
In Shanghai, the authorities arranged for officers to stay outside practitioners’ homes to monitor their daily activities beginning in late September.
Between late September and October 25, the police in Dongying City, Shandong Province followed Ms. Wang Fan wherever she went. Ms. Wang used to work at the Shengli Oil Field Management Bureau as a Russian translator but was fired in 2000 due to the persecution. Since 2017, the company has arranged for people to monitor her during major political conferences.
Police car following Ms. Wang Fan at 2 p.m. on October 7, 2022
Three officers in Dalian City, Liaoning Province, found Ms. Fang Caixia on September 30 and told her, “We are here to ‘safeguard’ the 20th Party Congress. Even if we have to dig three feet down to find you, we’ll do it. Before the 20th Party Congress, we have to meet with you once a week.”
Ms. Zhou Yan, Mr. Wu Bangjun, and Ms. Zhang, 80, of Mianyang City, Sichuan Province, were arrested on August 31, 2022, and taken to the Mianyang City Care Center, a brainwashing center in disguise, on September 1. All three were monitored around the clock and subjected to intensive brainwashing. Similar brainwashing sessions were also held in Yanji City, Jilin Province in early September.
Modern Day Surveillance
Sichuan Authorities Threaten to “Red-flag” Falun Gong Practitioner’s Health Code
The Chinese Communist Party launched the cellphone app “Health Code” in early 2020, claiming it was to track COVID-19, but many human rights experts expressed concerns that the app would be used as a surveillance tool for the authorities to target dissidents and faith groups.
In one recent case, a Falun Gong practitioner in Shuangliu County, Sichuan Province, reported that she was harassed by the police, who arbitrarily turned her “Health Code” from green to yellow and forced her to sign a statement promising not to be against the Party.
Ms. Li Caiqiong, 59, went to visit a friend at her tailor shop on the afternoon of September 28, 2022. Not long after, someone called her name from outside and said, “Your health code is now yellow. The government requires you to have the COVID-19 DNA test. If you don’t, your code will turn red.”
Ms. Li came out and saw it was Luo Long, the director of the local residential community. She suspected that Luo had found her with the location tracking function of the “Health Code” app.
Ms. Li refused to go with Luo, telling him that she hadn’t been exposed to the virus in recent days.
“You have to go with us!” Luo ordered her. Then another young official came over, and along with Luo, they pushed Ms. Li into their car and took her to the hospital.
After the test, Luo didn’t let Ms. Li go home on her own and insisted on giving her a ride. Luo then called someone for instructions. Before they left the hospital, another car arrived. Four young officers in plainclothes got out, dragged Ms. Li into the car, and took her to the Dongsheng Police Station.
Not long after, three officials came and introduced themselves as members of the Chengdu City Political and Legal Affairs Committee, an extra-judiciary agency tasked with overseeing the persecution of Falun Gong. They claimed that they were working on a new app to group Falun Gong practitioners by their health status and political views.
Ms. Li maintained that she wouldn’t renounce Falun Gong or sign any of their documents. She said that Falun Gong teaches people to be good and that it is beneficial to any individual, family, or country. She told them that she used to have many ailments, but all of them disappeared after she took up Falun Gong.
The officers said, “We don’t care if you just practice it at home. But if you talk about politics, we will go after you. We have a document for you to sign. There are two major requirements. The first one is that you can’t oppose the Communist Party or communism. The second requirement is that you can’t read books such as the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party or Disintegrating the Communists Party Culture. And you are not allowed to participate in any Falun Gong activities.”
After half an hour, the police took Ms. Li to the residential committee’s office and attempted to force her to sign the documents. They threatened to ransack her home if she didn’t comply.
When she insisted that she wouldn’t sign, the officers grabbed her hands and pressed her fingerprints onto their paperwork. They next seized her keys from her purse and confiscated her Falun Gong books, a photo of Falun Gong’s founder, and other related materials from her home.
Sichuan Woman Ordered to Stand Facing Surveillance Camera Three Times a Day
Police officers and village officials showed up at Ms. Zhong Fangqiong’s brother’s home in Jianyang City, Sichuan Province, where she was temporarily staying, at 3 p.m. on September 26, 2022. As no one was home, the officials called her brother and he returned home at around 4 p.m.
As soon as Ms. Zhong’s brother opened the door, the officials barged in and searched the place. A copy of Ms. Zhong’s Falun Gong book and the mat she used to do the Falun Gong meditation were confiscated.
Ms. Zhong, a professional in the transportation industry in her 50s, returned at around 4:30 p.m. An official then ordered her to sign a statement to renounce Falun Gong. When she refused to comply, two officers spread ink on her hand and used it to stamp the statement they had prepared.
A female official said to her, “It’s done. You have now renounced Falun Gong.” A male official said to the female official, “Hurry up. We still need to go to the next one [another practitioner].”
Before leaving, the female official ordered local officers to keep a close eye on Ms. Zhong. She also instructed them to install a surveillance camera near the front door of Ms. Zhong’s brother’s home.
For the next two days, the village head came every morning to take Ms. Zhong’s photo.
On September 29, the village secretary, Zhang Hu, ordered an officer to install the surveillance camera. He said to Ms. Zhong, “Now with the camera, we don’t have to come every day to take your photo. You just need to stand on the front step facing the camera every morning, noon, and evening. We will then send the footage of you to the authorities in Chengdu (which has jurisdiction over Jianyang).”
Not seeing Ms. Zhong in the surveillance video, Zhang called her at 5 p.m. on September 30 and asked her if she was home. After confirming that she was, he ordered her to go out and stand on the step for the camera to record her. She insisted that she wouldn’t do it.
The village head called Ms. Zhong’s brother the next day and ordered him to take a photo of her and send it to him. Her brother agreed but said he would only do it once. It’s not clear if the authorities harassed Ms. Zhong again after that.
Tracking Device on Woman's Tricycle
A Deyang City, Sichuan Province, woman was arrested at home on July 19, 2022, for her faith in Falun Gong. Although the police released Ms. Jian Yicong after she was diagnosed with tuberculosis, they threatened to arrest her entire family when she refused to comply with a subsequent physical exam. She also found a tracking device on her tricycle days later, which she suspected had been installed by the police months before.
Officers broke into Ms. Jian’s home at 10 a.m. on July 19. The police claimed that she was reported for talking to a student and giving out a flash drive with information about Falun Gong, although Ms. Jian said she never did. The police ignored her when she asked why the search warrant didn’t have the police chief’s signature. Her neighbors heard the commotion and came over to see what was going on, only to be driven away by the police.
During the raid, the village secretary also showed up. Ms. Jian asked for her help, but she responded, “I’ve given you opportunities. I’m a member of the Chinese Communist Party.”
The police searched every room of her home, including their closets and fridge. Her Falun Gong books and many office supplies were confiscated. The police also threatened to arrest her husband when he tried to stop them.
While interrogating Ms. Jian at the police station, an officer laughed as he said, “I feel so sorry for you. You just finished serving a term, and now you are facing another one.”
Days after Ms. Jian was released on bail, her electric tricycle suddenly stopped charging. When she took it in for repair, the technician found a GPS-enabled camera near the battery.
Violence Used on Practitioners
Police Arrest Falun Gong Practitioner and His Cousin, Draw Their Blood for Organ Matching Database
The police in Jinan City, Shandong Province, seized a Falun Gong practitioner and his cousin on October 4, 2022. According to his cousin, who was released a few days later, the officers handcuffed Mr. Xu Wenlong, 36, and put heavy shackles on him. They drew a sample of his blood and threatened to kill him. Mr. Xu was later given six months of house arrest to be served in Laosilijie Police Station. He has since been denied family visits.
Three officers went into Mr. Xu’s home on the afternoon of October 4. They held Mr. Xu and his cousin on the floor and one officer sat on Mr. Xu. On their way to the station, an officer beat and verbally abused Mr. Xu, who was handcuffed behind his back in the police vehicle. Mr. Xu’s shirt was ripped and he had pain in his ear.
The officers ordered Mr. Xu’s cousin to sit in an iron chair that had locks and belts to restrain her. They accused her of obstructing the police at Mr. Xu’s home. Even though she doesn’t practice Falun Gong, the police ordered her to curse the founder of the practice and said they would release her if she did. She refused to comply. When she warned the police that there would be legal consequences for their participation in the persecution, they said that they were just robots doing what they were told to do. The police left her in the room overnight.
The next morning, Mr. Xu’s cousin heard the sound of shackles hitting the ground. It turned out that Mr. Xu had just been brought back after being forced to have a physical exam in the hospital. They put him in a room next to hers. She overheard two officers talking about a kidney selling for 400,000 yuan. She asked them if they were talking about harvesting organs from Falun Gong practitioners. They remained silent.
She kept hearing the sound of shackles hitting the floor from the next room and thought it sounded like the officers were pushing Mr. Xu around or hitting him. Someone later went out to get rubbing alcohol and cotton balls. She then heard Mr. Xu scream. Two officers carried him to the men’s room. She asked to use the restroom, and as soon as she got there, she heard Mr. Xu scream in the men’s room. She also heard an officer swear at him and threaten to kill him.
She shouted from outside for the officers to stop beating Mr. Xu. Several of them came out, denied he was being beaten, and forbid her from using the restroom. As they put Mr. Xu back in his cell, one of them laughed at him, “Why doesn’t your belief protect you?”
The officers joked that arresting Mr. Xu and his cousin together seemed like “Buy one, get one free.”
Before releasing her, six officers took her to a well-equipped room, saying that every detainee had to give their fingerprints and a blood sample. She remembered that the Chinese authorities collected and analyzed the blood samples of Falun Gong practitioners and put the information in an organ-matching database so that they could target the practitioners for their organs in the future. None of the officers denied her suspicion that they were collecting blood samples for organ harvesting.
One officer held her down and bent her fingers backward while another ran out to get alcohol and cotton balls. They stabbed a needle into her hand and she screamed in pain. She then recalled hearing Mr. Xu’s screaming in this room and realized that was likely when the police were drawing his blood.
Police Grab Woman’s Hand and Bruise Her Finger
Ms. Wang Xiaoling, a 65-year-old Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, resident, received a call from a community worker on the evening of September 20, 2022, and was told to go to their office the next day to sign her low-income subsidy paperwork.
When Ms. Wang went the next afternoon, six officers from the Political and Legal Affairs Committee ordered her to sign a statement to renounce Falun Gong. When Ms. Wang refused to comply, they threatened to take her to the local brainwashing center or the police station. They also took her purse and searched for Falun Gong materials.
At 7 p.m., after an entire afternoon of a standoff, several officers attempted to force Ms. Wang to sign the statement. They grabbed her hand and, in the struggle, bruised one of her fingers. She still refused to sign the statement but was released at around 8 p.m.
Ms. Wang’s finger bruised due to police violence
Ms. Wang, a former employee of Sichuan Geological Environment Comprehensive Monitoring Station, has endured repeated persecution over the past two decades for upholding her faith.
Families’ Ordeals
Mother of San Francisco Resident Arrested, Denied Family Visit
Ms. Kong Qingping of Dalian City, Liaoning Province, was arrested on October 22, 2022, after being forced to live away from home for over a year to avoid persecution for her faith in Falun Gong. She is now being held at the Yaojia Detention Center and denied family visits.
Ms. Kong’s daughter, Ms. Liu Zhitong, who currently resides in San Francisco, USA, joined a rally in front of the Chinese Consulate on November 3, 2022, demanding the immediate release of her mother.
Ms. Liu said that she and her family are very worried about her mother. She has trouble falling asleep every night. As soon as she closes her eyes, her mother’s smiling face appears in front of her. She said the weather in Dalian is very cold now, but because the authorities not allowed the family to visit her, they don’t know if she has warm clothes to wear in the detention center.
Ms. Liu Zhitong holds a photo of her mother. The board reads, “Immediately release my mother Kong Qingping.”
Family Factory Seized, Mother Deceased, Father and Daughter Arrested, Son Displaced
A 77-year-old man and his daughter in Jilin City, Jilin Province, were arrested in late September 2022 for their faith in Falun Gong. While the father has been released on bail, the daughter remains in custody and has been denied visits with her lawyer. Her brother, who was previously incarcerated for 13 years for practicing Falun Gong, has been forced to live away from home to hide from the police.
The police began to harass the father, Mr. Zhao Xudong, on August 3, 2022. They kept calling Mr. Zhao or knocking on his door in early September and asked him if he still practiced Falun Gong.
Due to the endless harassment, Mr. Zhao went to the police station on September 4 and handed the officers a letter that explained that no law in China says that practicing Falun Gong is a crime and urged the officers to stop participating in the persecution.
The police arrested Mr. Zhao and his daughter, Ms. Zhao Guokun, on September 27 and took them to the Hadawan Police Station. Although they were soon released on bail, Ms. Zhao was arrested again on September 29 and taken to the Shulan City Detention Center.
Mr. Zhao hired a lawyer to represent his daughter. But the authorities demanded that the lawyer get permission from the police first before he could visit Ms. Zhao.
Mr. Zhao started an electronic control instruments factory in 1988 and soon grew it into a sizable company. After the persecution started, the company was seized by the government. His son was incarcerated for over 13 years. His wife passed away on February 5, 2012, after succumbing to the fear and mental distress stemming from the persecution.
When Mr. Zhao reached his retirement age of 60 in 2006, the authorities couldn’t find any record of his previous service at a state-owned enterprise, which prevented him from receiving any retirement benefits. The once well-to-do family faced a dire financial situation as a result.
After Ten Years of Displacement, Shandong Man Arrested and Facing Prosecution
After Mr. Wang Huayang took up Falun Gong in 1999, he quit smoking and drinking. The now 59-year-old Zhaoyuan City, Shandong Province, resident went from being short-tempered to upbeat and hardworking. The cholecystitis that had tormented him for years also disappeared.
Because he held firm to his faith after the Chinese communist regime gave orders to eradicate Falun Gong in China in 1999, Mr. Wang faced constant harassment by the local police. He was forced to go into hiding in March 2012 to avoid being persecuted, only to be arrested in Qixia City (a city in the same province that borders Zhaoyuan City) on July 27, 2022, after being reported for spreading information about the persecution. He is now being held at the Zhaoyuan City Detention Center and faces prosecution.
To collect information to charge him, the police targeted several practitioners who knew Mr. Wang. When they couldn’t find the practitioners, they turned to their family members.
Ten years ago, after Mr. Wang escaped an arrest on March 23, 2012, the police arrested his wife Ms. Chi Ruimei and their daughter Ms. Wang Longna. They were held at a detention center for 15 days and then taken to a brainwashing center for over three months. Ms. Chi was released on July 16, 2012, but her daughter was held in custody and later sentenced to three years.
Mr. Wang was forced to live away from home for the next ten years. The police installed surveillance cameras outside of his home and arranged for people in the village to monitor the situation.
Mr. Wang’s elderly parents were dealt a heavy blow by the persecution. His father suffered a stroke and became bedridden. He developed more health issues over the years and passed away without seeing Mr. Wang one last time.
Ms. Chi also faced constant harassment by the police and struggled to care for the family by herself.
Grandma Detained for Her Faith, Two Grandchildren Traumatized
After Ms. Tong Jinping’s son and daughter-in-law went to a neighboring province to work, they asked her to help take care of their two children, one in elementary school and the other in middle school.
When Ms. Tong of Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province, was arrested three months ago for her faith in Falun Gong, the two children were left in a dire situation.
The police broke into Ms. Tong’s home at 5 a.m. on June 16, 2022, and arrested her. Her grandchildren were terrified. The arrest took place just one day before her granddaughter had to take her 3-day high school admission exams. Because Ms. Tong’s son was unable to return home or have his children come live with him, he has entrusted another family member to help care for them. The children are longing for their grandmother to return.
Having Been Wrongfully Sentenced, Forced to Divorce, and Suffered the Loss of Her Mother, Woman Harassed Again for Her Faith
After growing up witnessing her mother’s repeated arrests and detention for refusing to renounce Falun Gong, Ms. Tian Lili found herself in the same bleak situation years later for sharing the same faith.
Ms. Tian, a 42-year-year-old Fushun City, Liaoning Province, resident, was arrested on August 23, 2018, and later sentenced to 1.5 years. Her then-husband, Mr. Lu Guofeng, who did not practice Falun Gong, was also arrested and detained for a month.
The police continued to harass Ms. Tian after she was released. Her parents-in-law fell ill due to the harassment and their daughter’s child was also harassed at school. To protect his family from being implicated, Mr. Lu was forced to divorce Ms. Tian.
The mental pressure from the persecution took a toll on the health of Ms. Tian’s mother, Ms. Liu Xiuqin. She passed away on January 23, 2022, at the age of 68. After she died, Ms. Tian’s father, who has been traumatized by her repeated arrests and home raids over the years and developed a severe heart condition, kept a distance from Ms. Tian. When Ms. Tian was arrested again on April 7, 2022, for talking to people about Falun Gong, the police ransacked her father’s home and he suffered a heart attack.
Ms. Tian was harassed again in October 2022, prior to the CCP’s 20th Party Congress. Even her ex-husband and his parents weren’t spared.
Ms. Tian and her ex-husband at their wedding
Professionals Targeted
Retired Professor and Father of San Francisco Resident Arrested
Mr. Huang Yongchang, a retired professor from the Institute of Theoretical Physics at Beijing University of Technology, was arrested at home on October 11, 2022. He is being held in the Chaoyang District Detention Center in Beijing and denied family visits.
Mr. Huang worked for more than 20 years and trained more than 30 masters and doctoral students. However, since the persecution began in 1999, he was arrested three times and his promotion to full professor was delayed for six years.
Mr. Huang’s son, Mr. Huang Changyu, a San Francisco resident, is calling on the CCP to release his father.
Mr. Huang Changyu, a San Francisco resident, addresses the rally on November 3, 2022. His display board says, “Immediately release my father Huang Yongchang.”
Forced to Drop Out of School at 17, Self-taught Interior Designer Arrested
When Mr. Zhao Yubo’s mother called him to inform him of the death of her mother, she was devastated to learn that he had been arrested earlier that day for practicing Falun Gong. Unable to cope, she fell ill and became bedridden.
Mr. Zhao’s parents have been divorced for a long time. The 39-year-old interior designer lives in Anshan City, Liaoning Province, with his father. A plainclothes officer knocked on their door on the afternoon of September 21, claiming to be looking for an elderly woman. After his father opened the door, the officers barged in and arrested Mr. Zhao and his father. While his father has been released and placed on residential surveillance, Mr. Zhao is still being held.
Mr. Zhao’s work computer, a broken printer, Falun Gong books, ID, cellphone, 6,400 US dollars, 18,000 yuan, and other personal belongings were confiscated. His family went to the police station several times to demand a list of the confiscated items, but the police ignored them. The police did give Mr. Zhao a list to sign, but the number of Falun Gong items taken from him was exaggerated and he refused to sign it.
Mr. Zhao began to practice Falun Gong in July 1997 when he was 14. He went from being an introverted, passive, and rebellious person to one who was outgoing, warm, and ready to help. His academic performance also improved quickly and he was well-regarded by his classmates.
Just as people around him were impressed with his amazing changes, the persecution started in 1999. Because he went to the local government in 2000 to appeal, the 17-year-old faced constant harassment at home and at school. His teacher and school leaders threatened to expel him if he didn’t renounce Falun Gong. With no other choice, he quit school and studied on his own. Yet the police still regularly harassed him.
Despite the hardship and pressure due to the persecution, Mr. Zhao grew into a resilient and strong person, who also has a big heart and is positive and optimistic. He eventually became an interior designer by teaching himself, and his designs were widely acclaimed.
Renowned Doctor Faces Prosecution for His Faith, His Patients Harassed by Police
To collect evidence to charge Dr. Li Jianxi, a famous Chinese medicine doctor Xiamen City, Fujian Province, for his faith in Falun Gong, the police harassed his patients and asked them if he had ever given them any Falun Gong materials.
Dr. Li has practiced Chinese medicine for over 30 years. His specialty is treating patients in critical condition. He once treated a 750-gram (1.7-pound) premature baby with a severe lung condition until it could breathe on its own a month later.
Since the onset of the persecution of Falun Gong in 1999, Dr. Li has faced constant harassment for upholding his faith, especially after he was put on the police blacklist for appealing for the right to practice Falun Gong in 1999.
Between March and July 2020, the Jimei District Political and Legal Affairs Committee ordered the local Health Bureau and Drug Administration to inspect Dr. Li’s clinic three times. Each time, the officials were accompanied by armed officers. When no significant problems were found, the authorities attempted to force Dr. Li’s landlord to terminate the lease on his clinic, claiming that he engaged in “illegal activities.”
Lyu Huoqu, the new deputy director of the Jimei District Political and Legal Affairs Committee, personally harassed Dr. Li at his clinic on February 23, 2021.
In a continued effort to collect information to frame Dr. Li, the authorities later arranged for officials to approach him under the pretext of medical consultation.
Dr. Li was arrested at home on June 19, 2022, during a police sweep. His wife and son, as well as clinic employees, were also taken away and briefly detained. To collect information against him, the police confiscated his patients’ profiles for the past eight years and called them, asking if Dr. Li had given them any Falun Gong materials.
Former Government Agency Directors Harassed
A married couple in Laishui County, Hebei Province, who have both served lengthy terms for practicing Falun Gong, were harassed again on September 27, 2022.
Ms. Liu Jinying
Three officers showed up at Mr. Zhang Dongsheng and Ms. Liu Jinying’s home at 11 a.m. on September 27. As no one was home, they took photos of their front door and left. The officers came back at around 2 p.m. This time, the couple had returned. When Mr. Zhang asked, the police denied they had come in the morning. They asked the couple if they still practiced Falun Gong. The couple refused to answer but urged the police not to participate in the persecution anymore.
Mr. Zhang used to work as the director of the Laishui County Local Taxation Bureau and Ms. Liu was the deputy director of the Laishui County Appeals Office.
For practicing Falun Gong, Ms. Liu was sentenced to five years. She suffered significant hair loss, loose teeth, and a sallow complexion as a result of involuntary drug administration and torture in the prison.
Mr. Zhang served 15 years in prison. When he was released in August 2016, he was emaciated, and the only two teeth he had left fell out shortly after.
Persecution of the Elderly
Police Arrest 80-year-old Woman After Monitoring Her for Two Years
A residential committee in Lianjiang City, Guangdong Province, summoned a local resident Ms. Li Qunzhen, 80, in early August 2022 and ordered her to sign a statement to renounce her faith in Falun Gong.
Ms. Li refused to comply and instead told the residential committee members how she had benefitted from practicing Falun Gong and that she could still take care of her incapacitated husband despite her age.
Days later, on August 21, Ms. Li’s husband fell into critical condition and was hospitalized. When Ms. Li rode her tricycle to the hospital to visit him on August 25, the residential committee secretary, who was driving a car, hit her front wheel. In no time, officers and residential committee staff members surrounded her and dragged her to a police car. At the station, the officers interrogated her and collected her fingerprints.
Later in the day, a dozen officers ransacked Ms. Li’s home, including the rooms of her daughter, her son, his wife, and their son, who were living in the same apartment unit. Even her tenants’ rooms upstairs weren’t spared.
The police claimed that they had been monitoring her daily for two years. She was discovered mailing letters about Falun Gong, and they intercepted most of them. She was also recorded by surveillance cameras distributing informational materials about Falun Gong near the park and the hospital in 2021.
Ms. Li has been released on bail to take care of her husband. Neither she nor her daughter, who agreed to be her guarantor, are allowed to leave town and must report to the police anytime they are summoned.
78-year-old Woman Still Harassed After Serving Third Prison Term
A 78-year-old widow in Shanghai has been frequently harassed by the police and residential committee after she finished serving a 3.5-year term for her faith in Falun Gong.
Ms. Pei Shanzhen, a retired middle school teacher, was sentenced to 3.5 years in late 2018 for distributing informational materials about Falun Gong. Her sentencing devastated her husband, Mr. Shi Jinquan. He passed away on September 18, 2020. He was 84 years old.
After Ms. Pei was released on June 26, 2022, the authorities first held her in a quarantine facility and then took her to her son’s home on July 3.
After that, the police in charge of her previous residence and their counterparts in charge of her son’s current residence kept harassing her and her son. They attempted to take their photos and ordered Ms. Pei to sign certain documents.
The latest harassment took place on September 28, when two officers knocked on the door and demanded to take Ms. Pei’s photo, claiming that they were collecting information to combat fraud. Her son refused to let them in.
Since the persecution started in 1999, Ms. Pei has been given one labor camp term and three prison terms totaling 14 years, for upholding her faith.
92-year-old Retired Professor and His Caregiver Arrested
The police in Changchun City, Jilin Province, ransacked Mr. Liu’s home and seized a large number of items, including Falun Gong books, a laptop, an iPad, a cell phone, and other things, on October 12, 2022. They also photographed the 92-year-old retired professor (first name unknown at this time). After taking away the seized items, the police returned and arrested him. Mr. Liu was carried into a police vehicle and taken to the Qinghe Street Police Station. His caregiver, who also practices Falun Gong, was arrested at the same time.
Mr. Liu was released at around 10 p.m. that night. His caregiver was interrogated and beaten. Her face was bruised and swollen when she was released the next day.
Decades of Persecution
Previously Incarcerated and Tortured for 11 Years, Hunan Man Arrested Again
A man in Linli County, Hunan Province, was arrested on September 8, 2022, and taken to the Changde Brainwashing Center, where he was subjected to intensive brainwashing aimed at forcing him to renounce his faith in Falun Gong.
Mr. Fu Jianping, 59, struggled with an acute liver condition and very low energy level since he was a child. He was often in the hospital and tried many medications, but nothing helped. After he graduated from high school, he joined the military but had to quit after two years due to his poor health.
He got a job at the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China but was soon hit with generalized fatigue. Although only in his 20s, he was very weak and often had to wear extra warm clothes. Not long after, he had to quit work and his girlfriend broke up with him. For the next few years, he sought medical help everywhere but to no avail.
In May 1996, while in the depths of despair, he came across Falun Gong and started to practice it. His long-term back pain, insomnia, bloated stomach, and anorexia soon disappeared. He returned to work in August 1999.
Because Mr. Fu refused to renounce Falun Gong in the face of the persecution, he was sentenced twice, once to three years and later to eight. He was also held in a forced labor camp for a year and a half. His wife, Ms. Zhu Guiying, also a Falun Gong practitioner, was arrested multiple times as well and held in a brainwashing center.
Lanzhou Man Arrested Again a Year after Serving 20 Years, Whereabouts Unknown
Having already been incarcerated and tortured for two decades, a 58-year-old man in Lanzhou City, Gansu Province, was arrested again on August 23, 2022, for his faith in Falun Gong.
Mr. Li Wenming’s landlord and six other Falun Gong practitioners were also arrested on the same day. While the other practitioners were released in five days, Mr. Li remains in custody and his current whereabouts are still unknown.
Tortured for 20 Years
Mr. Li, also known as Li Mingyi, used to work at the Lanzhou Locomotive Factory. After the persecution started, he was arrested four times and sentenced to 20 years for raising awareness of the persecution. The prison didn’t allow anyone to visit him during his lengthy term.
Mr. Li was arrested on August 30, 2002, for tapping into a cable TV network to raise awareness about the persecution, given the strict censorship in China. The police kicked and punched him before pushing him into the car. They tied Mr. Li to a chair with a belt and put a special helmet on his head. They kept tightening the handcuffs every four to five minutes, making Mr. Li quiver in pain and become incontinent. His wrists remained numb for over a year.
Mr. Li was sentenced to 20 years on October 27, 2002. He was placed in solitary confinement for a month on the first day he was admitted to Lanzhou Prison in September 2003. The confinement room was three square meters with a two-meter-square isolated yard. The bed was made of bricks with a pit at the foot of the bed used as a toilet. There was no heat or bedding. He always had to sleep with his clothes on. No utensils were provided, so he had to eat with his hands.
Mr. Li was forced to wear shackles weighing more than 20 pounds, and the guards wired the handcuffs and shackles together. His ankles bled due to the burr on the new shackles. He used the prisoner uniform pants to wrap around the shackles. After some time, the pants were shredded.
Mr. Li’s second solitary confinement took place in December 2004. The guards put 64-pound shackles on him and chained the shackles to his handcuffs. When it snowed, the guards made Mr. Li stay out in the yard every day from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. in only a pair of trousers, sneakers, and a long-sleeved jacket. The shackles were so heavy he couldn’t move and had to sit on the ground all day. The handcuffs and shackles weren’t removed at night, so he had to sleep curled up.
Mr. Li was placed in solitary confinement again after May 1, 2008. He was hung up by his wrists to a bunk bed for two weeks and not allowed to sleep. His body swelled and his feet and ankles turned black. He was half-conscious and there was blood in his urine. Once, he had to relieve himself and asked the inmates to let him down. But when the handcuffs were removed, he fell down and knocked the toilet over.
An inmate once punched him in the abdomen. The pain made him break out in a cold sweat. He barely survived the torture during those three months of confinement.
Related reports:
Reported in March and April 2022: 767 Falun Gong Practitioners Arrested or Harassed for Their Faith
Reported in Jan/Feb 2022: 782 Falun Gong Practitioners Arrested or Harassed for Their Faith
Reported in 2021: 16,413 Falun Gong Practitioners Arrested and Harassed for Their Faith
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