Mr. Zheng Xiangxin in Critical Condition from a Severe Head Injury in Baoding Prison

Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Zheng Xiangxin of Tanghai County, Hebei Province was arrested on February 25th, 2012 by Domestic Security Unit officers of the Tanghai Police Department. He was sentenced to ten years in prison. Recently, he suffered a severe head injury in Baoding Prison. According to sources, he was taken to a hospital to undergo cranial surgery, and is currently in critical condition. No detailed information is available.

According to the information source, Mr. Zheng is currently in the Baoding No. 1 Central Hospital. He is in a coma and critical condition. His wife and other family members have arrived in Baoding. According to a prison official, Mr. Zheng had a fall on October 26th which resulted in a brain hematoma and subsequently the cranial surgery.

However, Mr. Zheng's friends and family remain suspicious. They questioned why he fell immediately before the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Eighteenth People's Congress, and about the severity of injuries due to the fall.

According to another information source, late on the night of October 26th, a Falun Gong practitioner was persecuted so severely that he was taken to the hospital emergency room - only a few days after arriving at Baoding Prison. All prison guards previously given the next day off were called back and placed on high alert. The police lied and claimed that this practitioner suffered from bleeding in his brain from natural causes. The source also indicated that this practitioner's imprisonment had led to the “red fingerprint movement” of Tanghai County, Hebei Province in which over 1,000 Chinese citizens stamped their fingerprints on a petition requesting his release from prison. Mr. Zheng is strongly committed to practising Falun Gong and resisted the authorities' attempts to “transform” [forcibly renounce Falun Gong] him, thus it is probable that the authorities tortured him severely.

Mr. Zheng owned an electronics store in Shinongchang, Tanghai County. He is a well-known, law-abiding businessman in the area. Locals recommended his store for everything from an electric car to a refrigerator, because he never sold counterfeit goods. In addition, he repaired cars for free. His customers felt assured when buying from him.

Following Mr. Zheng's arrest, 562 local citizens signed a petition along with their fingerprints demanding his release, which resulted in major repercussions and drew attention both inside and outside of China. When Mr. Zheng’s life was in danger from the torture, over 1,200 citizens from two counties and eight townships in Tangshan and Qinghuangdao again signed a petition demanding his release. When the citizens learned that Mr. Zheng was sentenced to ten years in prison, they became even more indignant. Some stated, “This Communist Party is no good.” Others said, “There is no place to seek justice.” A 70 year-old woman said, “What kind of society has this become when such a good person is taken to prison. This society is finished...”