Illegal Detention and Imprisonment

  • Retired Practitioners Jailed in Qinghai Women's Prison

    On December 26th, 2008, police secretly transferred Falun Gong practitioners Ms. Zhang Xiuhua and Ms. Zhao Zonghua, from Xining City Detention Centre to Qinghai Women's Prison. Not long before this, these two women were brought to court for a secret trial. None of their family members or relatives was notified. Ms. Zhang and Ms. Zhao appealed to a higher court. The higher court not only kept the case a secret but also issued a prison sentence. The court did not notify the women's families of the trial date, which is not in keeping with the legal process. Ms. Zhang Xiulan and Ms. Zhao Zonghua were both sentenced to five years in prison. Qinghai Women's Prison's other name is the Leather and Feather Quilt and Clothing Factory.
  • Police Chief Breaks into a Family's Home and Arrests a Female Farmer

    On July 26th, 2007, a group of policemen broke in to Ms. Zheng Baozhen's home, ransacked it and arrested Ms. Zheng leaving her daughters terrified and all alone that night. The jail's inhumane living conditions caused Ms. Zheng to become ill and pass out. Ms. Zheng, being dangerously ill from the persecution, did not eat anything for a few days in protest. On the fifth day, the police violently force-fed her, adding unknown drugs into the mixture, which caused her to pass out several times. Because she was so ill the police released her. Ms. Zheng was unable to take care of herself.
  • Woman in China's Countryside Persecuted Repeatedly Since Learning Falun Gong in a Detention Centre Several Years Ago

    Because Ms. Xin Xiaoping follows the principle of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, she was arrested and detained by the county 610 Office in December 2005. Her home was searched. Since June 2006, she was forced to be homeless in order to avoid arrest. On October 15th, 2008, Ms. Xin was followed by police and arrested and sent to the Linli County Detention Centre. She has now been detained for more than three months.
  • 72-year-old Practitioner Ms. Wang Lianzhi Is Imprisoned

    Ms. Wang Lianzhi, a 72-year-old practitioner from Kunming City, Yunnan Province, was arrested in April 2008. At the end of November, the prison administration suddenly informed Ms. Wang's son that she had developed mental illness, but denied her son any visitation. Ms. Wang's son was shocked because not ten days earlier his mother's mental health was normal. How could this have happened? He asked who had made the diagnosis. They told him it was the city mental hospital. The son then asked to read the diagnosis. Because the whole thing was so suspicious. Ms. Wang's situation is still unclear and her family very worried about her.
  • Falun Gong Practitioner Zhang Zongquan from Tangshan City Put on Trial

    On July 10th, 2008, 48-year-old Mr. Zhang Zongquan's home was raided by more than 10 policemen and was arrested and taken to the Fengrun Detention Centre. When he was held in the detention centre, Mr. Zhang's family members sought advice from two lawyers. The lawyer was not allowed to see Mr. Zhang until December 8th. On December 10th, Mr. Zhang was brought to the court. Mr. Zhang defended himself without a lawyer. The trial lasted only thirty minutes and ended without a conclusion. The family members were filled with indignation at the end of the trial.
  • Chinese Communist Party Officials in Yishui County, Shandong Province Again Harass and Arrest Falun Gong Practitioners

    At about 9:00 a.m. on January 8th, 2009, more than ten police officers broke into practitioner Mr. Zhao Mingjiang's home. They confiscated his belongings including a mobile phone, and took Mr. Zhao and his wife to the police station. Zong Shanbin and a police officer named Yu Hongwei removed Mr. Zhao's shirt and beat him for a long time, causing his face and mouth to become swollen and deformed. They sent him to a detention centre that night. They also beat Mr. Zhao's wife and didn't release her until 6:00 p.m.
  • Falun Gong Practitioners He Jinliang, Wang Tianyu and Others from Zhoukou City, Henan Province Arrested

    On January 4th, 2009, Shanan District Police Department National Security Division leader and two policewomen arrived in a police car at Falun Gong practitioner Mr. He Jinliang's home. They parked their car on the street and knocked on the door. As soon as Mr. He opened the door, the police immediately pushed him into the police car. Mr. He's wife realized that her husband had not come back in and went out to check on him. The policemen pushed her into the car too. Right then, another practitioner, Mr. Feng Zijun arrived to visit Mr. He. Feng Zijun saw the police car and that the door to the home was open, which is unusual. He realized something was wrong and attempted to leave immediately, but it was too late. The police took him away, too.
  • Mr. Lei Bifu Arrested After Suffering Seven Years of Persecution

    In October 2008, Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Lei Bifu returned home after he had been forced to flee home seven years prior. Only two months later, on December 12th, 2008, police arrested Mr. Lei at the farmers' market. Once they found Mr. Lei, they shot him with a tranquillizer gun, forced him down to the ground, and beat him with electric batons. They arrested both Mr. Lei and his wife, and beat them all the way to the police station. The couple sustained severe injures. At the same time, eight officers searched Mr. Lei's house. Mr. Lei's wife was released on the second day. Mr. Lei has been detained at the Kai County Detention Centre since the arrest.
  • Painter Mr. Wang Mingyue and Photographer Mr. Jin Xiaohui from Beijing Sent to Forced Labour Camp

    On July 8th and 9th, 2008, two practitioners from Beijing were arrested; one is a famous oil painter, Mr. Wang Mingyue, and the other is a photographer, Mr. Jin Xiaohui. They are now imprisoned in the Tuanhe Forced Labour Camp in Beijing. Mr. Wang was in very good physical condition before his arrest, but now, according to a witness from the labour camp, he has lost a great deal of weight. This is yet another case of the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) persecution of Falun Gong practitioners under the excuse of "safeguarding the Olympic Games."
  • Mr. Liu Yizhi and Ms. Bai Hongzhen in Prison Since October

    On the morning of August 6th, 2008, practitioners Mr. Liu Yizhi and Ms. Bai Hongzhen were tried in the Xunyang District Court in Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province by Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials. When their family members arrived at the court hearing, they were searched. The trial lasted less than an hour, and the families heard no news of a verdict until November 1st. Mr. Liu phoned home to inform his family that he had been secretly sentenced to two years in prison. Ms. Bai was sentenced to five years.
  • Police Repeatedly Arrest 60-Year-Old Mr. Zhang Shixiang from Jianyang City, Sichuan Province

    Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Zhang Shixiang is more than 60 years old. Over the past few years, he has been jailed many times and forced to become homeless in order to avoid further persecution. On November 4th, 2008, more than ten policemen from the National Security Group of Jianyang City arrested him. He is currently detained in the Jianyang City Detention Centre.
  • Judges in Jinshui District, Zhengzhou City Trample on Justice

    Ms. Cheng Zhengping, a Falun Gong practitioner, was secretly tried and sentenced to prison. On November 16th, her youngest daughter and lawyer Li Subin went to the court for a second time to ask for the sentencing document, and showed Judge Ren Yuan and Chief Judge Ma the Chinese Constitution. The two judges conferred, but refused to show them the sentencing document. Lawyer Li insisted, and Judge Ren said, "I'm not going to show you the paper. Who knows if you are a real lawyer or not? Where is the proof?" Li was visibly upset and said, "How can officers of the court act like this? How can you possibly be judges?"
  • Mr. Wang Xinchun Again Arrested and Tortured for 72 Hours After Being Crippled from Persecution (Graphic Photo)

    On December 8th, 2008, Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Wang Xinchun was arrested by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) again. Mr. Wang lost his feet and became crippled from the last time he was arrested. The police tortured Mr. Wang for 72 hours, and his face was deformed and his wrist was injured in four places. After Mr. Wang was released home, the police closely monitored him around the clock, disrupting his family life. Wang Xinchun was arrested in July 2005, April 2006, December 2006 and March 2008. He was cruelly beaten and tortured each time.
  • The Zunhua City Police and Justice Department Refuse to Release Mr. Zhao Jingjun Despite Lack of Evidence

    "Mr. Zhao Jingjun has been detained for more than five months, and he will now be tried in court." As this news was spread all over Qihu Village, some of the villagers became very angry and said, "The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) does nothing good. It just arrests good people. After Mr. Zhao, a Falun Gong practitioner, was arrested on July 6th, 2008, the Zunhua City Police Department in Hebei Province fabricated evidence and requested an arrest warrant. The Zunhua City Court put Zhao Jingjun on trial on November 25th. Because of insufficient evidence, the Court rejected the case and sent it to the Procuratorate for further investigation. Mr. Zhao's family has already asked for help from a lawyer.
  • Unreasonable Judgement Handed Down in Northern Shenyang City in 2008

    Around the time of the Olympics, the Chinese Communist regime used "social stability" as an excuse to arrest four Falun Gong practitioners from Shenbei New District, Shenyang City, Liaoning Province. On December 1st-9th, 2008, Shenbei District Court sentenced four practitioners to very heavy penalties. Ms. Wang Shumei was the first practitioner to be tried. Ms. Wang insisted that by following the principle of Truthfulness-Compassion- Forbearance, she did not do anything wrong, and she asked to be released immediately. This made Sun Yonggang, the 610 Office head, very angry. He yelled, "I will have you sentenced to ten years!" That's all it took--one sentence spoken by Sun Yonggang for Ms. Wang Shumei to be sentenced to ten years.