Letter from a Practitioner's Mother to a Prosecutor in Henan Province

To Shan County, Henan Province's Prosecutor-in-Charge:

I am the mother of Falun Gong practitioner Wu Zhongmin. I am writing to you to report the savage persecution that my son has been suffering. I hope that you will uphold justice.

I am hereby suing Li Fengrui, chief officer of the Bureau of Public Security in Shan County, Henan Province. The government is bound to abide by the regulation that nobody should be imprisoned beyond their jail term. Recently the government also reiterated that the person who is responsible for the extended imprisonment of a person must be investigated and held accountable. My son was sentenced to two years of forced labour. It has' been over four years now, and he is still not released. I am requesting you to realize the government's pledge to the people.

My son Wu Zhongmin was arrested on August 17, 1999 when he went to Beijing to legally appeal for Falun Gong. On August 23, 1999 Wu Zhongmin was taken to a jail in Shan County. In October he was imprisoned in a detention centre. In May 2000 he was imprisoned in jail. Originally he was only given two small steamed buns to eat for a day, and was given no vegetables at all.

On December 1, 2000, I went to Xuchang City to meet my son. I discovered my son's hair had turned white. I asked Li Fengrui for the reason, why did this happen? Chief officer Li said they did not torture my son. But my son's hair was black before and he was only in his 30's. What happened to him during the last few months? What types of suffering and tortures could cause one's hair to turn completely white?

On October 22, 2000, my son Wu Zhongmin was sentenced to two years of forced labour. On October 26 he was imprisoned at the Third Labour Camp in Xuchang City, Henan Province. As soon as he arrived at the labour camp courtyard, his head was hit so severely that he bled. The scar and scabbing on the left side of his forehead was still there when I went to see him. The cut was more than one inch long.

They beat Wu Zhongmin mercilessly at the Xuchang City Labour Camp many times. Furthermore, the labour camp willfully extended or changed his forced labour term. It had been planned to release him from the labour camp in August 2001, but with no explanation, his release was utterly delayed and he was not released until April 27, 2002.

Unbelievable as it seems, it turned out that the so-called release was rescinded and he was not permitted to go home after all. Officials from the Shan County Police Branch in Henan Province sent someone to the Third Labour Camp in Xuchang City and handcuffed my son in the labour camp's courtyard. Then, he was taken back to and imprisoned at the Shan County Prison. So far, my son is still imprisoned at a brainwashing class.

In December 2003 I called chief officer Li Fengrui to ask about my son's injuries and to inquire about his release from the labour camp. Chief Officer Li still said that my son was not tortured. How could Chief Officer Li ignore the facts and tell lies? How could I trust them anymore?

Not too long ago, my oldest son and daughter went to see Wu Zhongmin. They learned that Wu had difficulties walking and he was physically weak. If the vegetables tasted slightly salty, his stomach would feel extremely uncomfortable. Imprisoning Wu for more than a two-year illegal extension and unwilling to release him, the labour camp insisted on forcing him to "be transformed" (give up practising Falun Gong).

According to my personal experience, after my son started practising Falun Gong, he learned to become a good person. After that, he became very healthy, and became very gentle and docile as well. Furthermore, he also worked more earnestly. I do not understand what could be wrong with this? He hasn't harmed anyone. Certainly he hasn't harmed society. He is an extremely sensible and rational person. I wonder what they want to "transform" him into?

I was told that chief officer Li Fengrui is the head of the "610 Office." He said to me on the telephone, "The country has banned Falun Gong, but you are just determined to practise... only your son has not been transformed."

Officer Li wanted us to do him a favour. He said he was a communist party member, therefore he must listen to what the party ordered him to do and he must accomplish the tasks the authorities assign to him. Li Fengrui also said that, "we simply have to crack down on this kind of people." I asked what they were trying to crack down on, that my son was not a counter-revolutionary. He then changed his ploy and said that they must "educate" him. I said, "How did you educate him? He is a good person, and in which direction do you want to guide him? Did you really educate him? Education is supposed to be voluntary. You are persecuting him! You used the label of education to actually persecute him. We do not want it."

Chief officer Li Fengrui unexpectedly threatened me and said, "you are a very stubborn old woman," and when the time came they would go to my home and handle my son's matter together. He could not predict what would happen then. He also insisted to get my name and repeatedly said that I was very stubborn. In addition, he said that I was a very competent person, and I should take care of all Falun Gong issues of the country.

Li Fengrui knowingly violated the law. It is absolutely wrong to persecute my son! Section 40 in the Chinese Constitution clearly states that citizens have the right to appeal, and to freedom of belief. Their deeds are trampling human rights. They illegally imprison innocent people, even extending their terms, and willfully carry out physical and mental tortures. It is a crime.

Shan County Prosecutor, please investigate and process this matter. Please solve this problem as soon as possible. If you do not solve and process this matter, please inform me in an official letter as soon as possible, so that I will report this matter to even higher authorities.

(signed) Wu Zhongmin's mother

Phone number of Shan County Police Station: 86-398 -- 3833900

Additional Note:

As we were about to post this letter, we were told that Wu Zhongmin ingeniously escaped from the jail at Shan County in Henan Province and freed himself from the police. A few days ago, several police broke into Wu Zhongmin mother's residence and arrogantly demanded to know Wu's whereabouts. Only then did the mother learn that her son had escaped from his captors. The police told the mother that her son was not "transformed," but that he had ran away.

Wu's mother asked the police to show her their IDs. She gave them paper and pens, and asked them to write down their names, work units and phone numbers in order to contact those places to confirm the information of her son's tortures, illegal imprisonment and the extended imprisonment.

The police were scared. They dared not to tell her their names, nor were they willing to show their IDs and asked, "Are you going to expose us on Minghui.net [Chinese version of Clearwisdom.net]?" Afterwards, the police quickly sneaked off, which made Wu's mother feel strangely odd.

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2004/2/10/67049.html