(Minghui.org) A man in Baoding City, Hebei Province, was tortured while serving a three-year term for his faith in Falun Gong.
Mr. Shi Zongxi was first arrested on February 13, 2020. He managed to escape from police custody and went into hiding. He was arrested two more times in the following months and was released each time.
The police called Mr. Shi’s son in May 2021 and promised to clear Mr. Shi of charges if he reported to them “to wrap up his case from last year.” His son believed the police and persuaded his father to do as ordered. Mr. Shi went to the police station days later, on May 27, only to be arrested and admitted to the Mancheng District Detention Center.
The living conditions at the detention center were very poor. There was no hot water for showers, and the food consisted mostly of steamed buns and pickles. The bedding was filthy and thin, and there was almost no padding on the wooden beds.
Mr. Shi was tried in the Shunping County Court on February 17, 2023. His wife was the only family member allowed in the courtroom. His two lawyers entered a not guilty plea on his behalf. They were shocked to see that the prosecutor listed Shi Lianyou (no relation to Mr. Shi), a villager who had died in 2018, as a witness for the prosecution. It’s not clear if Shi Lianyou’s “witness account” was deemed admissible evidence when the judge announced months later that Mr. Shi was sentenced to three years.
Mr. Shi appealed with the Baoding City Intermediate Court, but it ruled to uphold the original verdict.
Mr. Shi was taken to Dingzhou Prison on July 3, 2023. After it refused to admit him, the police took him back to the detention center. On July 18, 2023, days before the guards took him to the Fourth Branch of Jidong Prison, Mr. Shi demanded to see his family. The guards denied his request, with the excuse that he hadn’t renounced Falun Gong.
On the way to the prison, the detention center guards put the heaviest handcuffs and shackles on Mr. Shi. During the two months he was held in the detention center, several guards ordered him to renounce Falun Gong. He refused to comply. He also found out that the detention center withheld over 800 yuan from his commissary account and never returned it to his family as promised.
Mr. Shi was later transferred to Fifth Branch of Jidong Prison, where, he was forced to do slave labor for over ten hours a day. He was also required to do security duty for a few hours after lunch and at night. The food consisted of steamed buns, boiled vegetables, and pickles.
Because Mr. Shi refused to renounce Falun Gong, he was denied visits with his family and cash deposits into his commissary account. Once, his wife and son traveled a long way to visit him, but the guards turned them away.
Although the guards took turns working on Mr. Shi, he remained firm in his faith. In February 2024, Peng Sun, the head of the Second Division, attempted to force Mr. Shi to sign several statements to renounce and denounce Falun Gong. He again refused. Sun reduced the amount food he was given by half and arranged for the head inmate, Hou Jinsuo, to watch him.
When Mr. Shi asked Hou why he was persecuting him, Hou responded that if he didn’t follow the guard’s order, he couldn’t be the head inmate anymore.
Mr. Shi was released on May 11, 2024.
Related Reports:
Hebei Man Sentenced to Three Years for His Faith
Prosecutor Lists Long-dead Villager as Witness Against Falun Gong Practitioner
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