(Minghui.org)

Name: Zhang WeiChinese Name: 张伟Gender: FemaleAge: 62City: DonggangProvince: LiaoningOccupation: Small business ownerDate of Death: August 19, 2025Date of Most Recent Arrest: April 18, 2015Most Recent Place of Detention: Liaoning Province Women’s Prison

A 62-year-old woman in Donggang City, Liaoning Province died on August 19, 2025, barely a year after she survived nine hellish years in prison for practicing Falun Gong.

Ms. Zhang Wei

Ms. Zhang Wei, a small business owner, took up Falun Gong in August 1998. She held firm to her faith after the communist regime started persecuting the ancient mind-body practice in July 1999. She was given an unknown term of forced labor in 2001 and extorted 60,000 yuan by the police.

After another arrest in April 2002, Ms. Zhang was sentenced to seven years in prison. She was brutally tortured and fell into critical condition. The prison authorities released her in February 2003. Ms. Zhang was seized during a police sweep in April 2015 and given nine years. She suffered brutal torture in prison and was denied family visits for four years after she showed her family her injuries during an earlier visit. She was released on April 17, 2024, only to die a bit over a year later.

Brief Persecution History

Ms. Zhang was arrested on April 8, 2002 and escaped days later on the 17th. She was put on the wanted list and seized on August 1. She went on a hunger strike and was brutally force-fed. She fell into critical condition and was rushed to the hospital. She was sentenced to seven years on September 25, 2002 and admitted to the Liaoning Province Women’s Prison on November 4 that year.

The prison guards subjected Ms. Zhang to various forms of torture and she had a mental breakdown. She couldn’t lift her head or straighten her back. She had no response to others. Her eyes were dull and blank. At her family’s strong request, the guards took her to the prison hospital for a checkup at the end of 2002. She was found to have all kinds of illnesses and could die at any time. Only then did the prison agree to release her on medical parole. The Donggang City Police Department, however, refused to sign off on the required paperwork.

On February 24, 2003, the prison sent Ms. Zhang straight home when they noted that she was on the verge of death.

Ms. Zhang gradually recovered, but was arrested again on April 18, 2015 during a police sweep. She was sentenced to nine years on December 28 that year and admitted to the Liaoning Province Women’s Prison on April 5, 2016.

She was again put through all kinds of brutal torture and sustained severe injuries. When her husband and mother visited her on August 15, 2018, she showed them her wounds and was denied family visits for the next four years.

During a physical exam, Ms. Zhang was diagnosed with cervical cancer, but the prison never told her or her family about it. After she was released on April 17, 2024, her health kept declining. She died on August 19, 2025.

For details of Ms. Zhang’s persecution, see the related reports.

Related Reports:

Liaoning Woman Denied Family Visits for Four Years, Force Fed After Going on a Hunger Strike

Wife Tortured in Prison, Husband Sues Persecutors

"Get Zhang Wei Out of the Prison, Or She May Be Beaten to Death"

Imprisoned Woman Denied Family Visits for Four Months for Doing Falun Gong Exercises

Two Sisters Jailed for Their Faith Denied Family Visits on Multiple Occasions

Two Sisters in Liaoning Province Imprisoned and Tortured for Their Faith

Dandong Court Tries 11 Practitioners Amid Numerous Legal Violations

43 Dandong Residents Arrested Overnight for Being Falun Gong Practitioners

Ms. Zhang Wei from Donggang, Liaoning Province Brutally Tortured in Shenyang Women's Prison