Practitioner Liu Dejun Arrested, Shot at, Imprisoned and Persecuted to Death for Meditating

Mr. Liu Dejun, 51, was a retired hotel worker from the Xinglongtai Oil Extraction Plant of the Liaohe Oil Field, at Panjin City, Liaoning Province. He was arrested on May 25, 2003 and died around July 11 as a result of the persecution. (His family was notified of his death on the morning of July 12, but the actual time of death is unknown).

On the morning of May 30, 2001, Mr. Liu sat in meditation in the vacant lot in front of his home. Wang Youshan, the head of the "610 Office" (an agency specifically created to persecute Falun Gong, with absolute power over each level of administration in the Party and all other political and judiciary systems) of Liaohe Oil Exploration Bureau, led several policemen to forcefully arrest him. They also broke into his home and ransacked it. Soon afterword, they sent Mr. Liu to a forced labour camp in Panjin City.

At 8:00 one morning in May 2001, under the pretence of searching for a fugitive and without the consent of Liu's family, Wang Youshan took several policemen to illegally search Liu's home. They were unable to break open the door, so they used a machine that acted as a portable elevator platform to reach a window, through which they broke in and proceeded to ransack his home.

At 4:00 p.m. on July 30, 2002, Wang Youshan led around a dozen policemen in four police cars to arrest Mr. Liu. After several futile attempts to break open the door, they surrounded the building and waited. The building remained under obvious surveillance until 8:00 p.m., July 31. Liu had already escaped with righteous thoughts that morning. Since then, he was unable to return home, being forced into homelessness. That night, policemen hauled away his new motorcycle (valued at 5000 yuan [average urban worker monthly income around 500 yuan]) which had been kept locked outside the building.

In September 2002, Mr. Liu's pension was terminated. Later, the central heating and electricity of his home was disconnected meaning that both his wife and children were unable to live there. Even if they had wanted to sell their home, it would have been impossible.

The police eventually discovered the house that Mr. Liu had been renting, and on May 25, 2003, arrested Mr. Liu just outside the building. During the course of the arrest, the police fired several shots, and witnesses saw Mr. Liu and his motorcycle fall down together. The police then broke into his home. Except for the large furniture like the refrigerator and the bed, everything that could be carried away was looted. About ten thousand yuan in cash disappeared without a trace.

The police never notified his family, who subsequently learned of his arrest and three-year labour term through a non-official channel. After asking around, Mr. Liu's wife was able to locate and briefly meet with her husband twice in a hospital. Following those two visits, however, she was unable to determine his whereabouts. She asked the forced labour camp about his whereabouts. Although they said that he was not there, they would not say where he was. She went to police stations and similar units to ask for information about her husband, but without satisfaction. When the police arrest a person without notifying his family, and then refuse to give out any information about him, then it is essentially kidnapping.

On the morning of July 12, 2003, the police notified Liu Dejun's family that he had died in Panjin City Detention Centre. Further information about when or how Liu Dejun died is unknown. Now, in a reversal of justice, it is the victim's survivors who are worried and afraid, while the attitude of the people who committed the crime has become arrogant and aggressive. Because Mr. Liu's family and relatives are scared that there will be more trouble, they have been intimidated into silence by the abuse of the police’s power. Under these circumstances, more information is unavailable.

Responsible parties:

Wang Youshan, head of the "610 Office," Liaohe Oil Exploration Bureau, with a long record of criminal acts: 86-427-7801610 (H), 86-427-782114 (O)
Yu Changhe, Chief of the Panjin City Police Department: 86-427-2821974 (O)
Zhou Laixing, Chief of the Politics and Security Division, Panjin City Police Department: 86-427-2838165 (H), 86-427-2810214 (O), 86-427-2832857 (O)
Guo Xingwen, office secretary of the Panjin City Party Committee: 86-427-2822182 (O)
Panjin City 3rd Detention Centre: 86-427-2882529
Office of the Chief, Panjin City 3rd Detention Centre: 86-427-2883700
Entrance Security Office, Panjin City 3rd Detention Centre: 86-427-3881593; 86-427-3881512
Chief of the Panjin City 3rd Detention Centre: 86-427-3881641

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.cc/mh/articles/2003/7/17/54139.html