Falun Gong Practitioners Released from Two Forced Labour Camps in Beijing Now in Brainwashing Centres

The forced labour camp system under the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is notorious, both at home and abroad, for depriving citizens of their freedom without going through any legal procedures.

Over the past 14 years, uncountable numbers of Falun Gong practitioners fell victim to this system simply for living by the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, and letting people know the facts about the practice and the persecution. In an attempt to force practitioners to give up their beliefs, CCP authorities nationwide have harassed, arrested, and incarcerated them, forcing them to do hard labour to generate profits to benefit the Party.

Public outcry finally resulted in a change in official policy--the shutting down of the labour camp system. Recently, two forced labour camps in Beijing have released detained practitioners. However, those practitioners who were unyielding in their belief were taken straight to brainwashing centres.

In other words, even though the CCP claims it is phasing out the forced labour camp system, it continues to persecute practitioners by sending them to brainwashing centres and prisons.

Two Camps in Beijing

The labour camps mentioned above are the Beijing Xin'an Forced Labour Camp and the Beijing Women's Forced Labour Camp. These two camps are located in the Daxing District, in the southern part of Beijing. Beijing Women's Prison is also in this district.

Most of the practitioners held in Beijing Xin'an Forced Labour Camp were taken home either by their families or the police from their local areas on July 5th, 2013. Practitioners who refused to be "transformed" [forcibly renounce Falun Gong] or had made declarations saying that their "transformations" were invalid were taken to local brainwashing centres by their local community management office or 610 Office personnel. 610 Office agents (an organisation of special agents just for persecuting Falun Gong) deceived the families by saying that they could take them home in a few days.

Mr. Gao Jianming from the Daxing District in Beijing was taken home by his family on July 8th, while Mr. Liu Yongping from the Xicheng District is still in the Xicheng Brainwashing Centre located in the Changping District. The brainwashing centre is located in the bungalows nearby Shahe and Xiaotangshan. Agents from the Xicheng 610 Office and the Funei Community Management Office picked up Mr. Liu from the camp and took him to the brainwashing centre.

Beijing Xin'an Forced Labour Camp is the transfer station for male prisoners. It holds about 350 practitioners every year. Xin'an Forced Labour Camp officials "sold" practitioners for 1,000 yuan¹ each to other camps located outside of Beijing.

Therefore, the number of detainees changes from time to time. The Chinese Communist regime's forced labour camps regard their detainees as slaves, who are forced to do hard labour to earn huge profits, and who are often "sold" to other labour camps.

Beijing Women's Forced Labour Camp changed its name to "Drug-addiction Treatment Centre" last year. Beginning in March, they stopped admitting new prisoners. They began releasing practitioners in May, and the camp is now empty.

Released Practitioners Detained Elsewhere

Even though these two labour camps released some practitioners, it does not mean that the CCP has let up in its determination to persecute Falun Gong. The 610 Offices, which were set up by the CCP specifically to persecute Falun Gong, control the courts to ensure that practitioners are sentenced, either to a brainwashing center or to prison.

The 610 Office has been setting up more brainwashing centres to carry out its "legal education," which consists of both mental and physical torture.

Conditions in the Camps

The forced labour camp system was set up in the late 1950s for the purpose of detaining the so-called "Rightists." Over the past 14 years, it has persecuted innocent practitioners.

The guards in Beijing Xin'an Forced Labour Camp have raped, sexually harassed, brutally forced-fed, tried to brainwash, and deprived practitioners of sleep. Some practitioners were tortured to death.

Mr. Liu Chun from the Mentougou District in Beijing was tortured to death on January 19th, 2011. Because he refused to give up his belief, Mr. Liu was tortured many times, leaving him emaciated and covered with red blotches.

In Beijing Women's Forced Labour Camp, practitioners were shocked with electric batons, beaten, deprived of sleep, starved, and not allowed to use the washroom. If the practitioners were not "transformed," the terms of collaborators (former practitioners, brainwashed against Falun Gong, made to assist in brainwashing and torturing practitioners) were extended, so the collaborators beat and humiliated practitioners, forced them to sit on small stools, deprived them of sleep, put drugs in their food, and made them perform hard labour

Note

1. "Yuan" is the Chinese currency; 500 yuan is equal to the average monthly income of an urban worker in China.