Account of Brutal Persecution Dafa Practitioner Received in Jiamusi Forced Labour Camp

By a Dafa Practitioner in China

In the Spring of Year 2002, the police officers in the Jiamusi Forced Labour Camp started an intensified persecution against Dafa practitioners. The cleaning work in the intensified unit used to be done by the criminal inmates, but then was assigned to us. We all felt we did nothing illegal and should not cooperate with the groundless requests from the authorities. As a result, a policewoman named Hong Wei cruelly prevented us from going to the toilet. We had to use our washing basins as toilets yet the authorities would not permit us even to clean out the basin in order to persecute us. Later, Hong Wei handcuffed me to the bed. My fellow practitioners tried to stop her and Hong just punched her to the ground. Even when I had to use the toilet, the authorities would not take the handcuffs off, making things very difficult and painful. Later I thought I should not let the police viciously persecute me like this, so I resisted and tried to take off the handcuffs. Hong Wei then slapped me across the face. She also ordered criminals to watch me. Another practitioner and I started a hunger strike. On the 4th day, the police started to brutally force-feed us and almost tortured us to death. The police and criminals pressed down my head, slapped my face, pinched my legs, and forcibly inserted a plastic tube into my mouth.

In November 2002, the police were persecuting without restraint. A newly detained practitioner and I were both brutally tortured together. Every day from 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m., we were forced to watch propaganda videos defaming Dafa. If we averted our eyes from the TV screen, we were beaten. After 9:00 p.m., if anyone of us closed or blinked our eyes, we were forced to sit motionless on the bench an additional 10 minutes. Thus, we could not go to bed until midnight. The police kept cursing us all day long. Some fellow practitioners' hips became injured being forced to sit motionless for extended periods. The police tortured us in order to a get bonus for forcing us to renounce our belief in Falun Dafa. Every day, they would take several practitioners out of the cells and handcuff them with "Big Back Cuff" [The practitioner's hands are cuffed behind her back with one hand over the shoulder and the other hand against the lower back. The policewomen then apply a great deal of force to pull the two hands toward one another and handcuff the two hands together.], which is a very painful torture. One practitioner refused to renounce her belief even when handcuffed like that. Policewoman Liu Yadong then stripped all her clothing off below the waist to punish her.

In February 2003, the authorities began another round of persecution to try to force us to sign the "Five Statements" [promising not to practise Falun Gong, stating regret over practising in the past, declaring separation from Falun Gong, and denouncing Falun Gong.]. We refused to comply with their demands as it was nonsense. The police then started to handcuff our hands from behind our back. I was handcuffed like this for 7 hours, the pain made me sweat profusely. My sweater and coat became soaked as a result.

In March 2003, I was transferred to Unit 7. One month later, my blood pressure started to rise to 120-180mm/gh. From then on, I was not well enough to do the forced labour. The extremely heavy labour from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. made many practitioners unable to raise their arms. Because I refused to write those statements against Falun Dafa Dafa, the police handcuffed me behind my back in a storage room.

On May 25, 2003, the police were not allowed to go home due to the SARS epidemic. They lived in the room across the storage room where I was handcuffed. Four policewomen lived in one room. In the beginning, they handcuffed me on the floor and ordered two criminals to watch me. It was very cold in May. I was forced to sit on the floor for 5 consecutive days and nights and my legs were all numb. Once I was in terrible pain and suddenly lost consciousness. The criminals then carried me to the bed and called in a doctor to check my blood pressure. The doctor suggested handcuffing only one hand. But after the doctor left, they handcuffed my two hands again. Later when the SARS warning dismissed, the police all went home. The chief Zhang Xiaodan and He Qiang decided to keep me cuffed in Unit #9 because there were steel beds in Unit #9; this way they could handcuff me to the bed. Liu Yadong from Unit #9 said to me fiercely, "Now that you have come to my place, I will not spoil you." She then handcuffed me to the bed and slapped my face. On the 2nd day, she handcuffed one hand of mine on top of the bed and another hand below it. Thus my two arms were separated and stretched. The stretching was too painful to bear. I felt like my shoulders were breaking. Liu Yadong ordered people to remove the pillow and remove all quilts and not permit me to sit. The chilly wind blew cross the open window, making me shiver non-stop. A newly admitted criminal secretly moved my handcuffs down a little to be less painful. She said, "I saw you are so strong. You gave me strength. I am not missing home nor crying. I really admire you."

One week later, the vicious police Mu Zhenjuan saw that I still did not write the statements against Dafa. She slapped my face and said to me viciously, "Keep her handcuffed!" I had severe headaches and extreme pain in my two shoulders. I also felt pain in my chest. I was emaciated and was given only a little bit of food per day. One day, the policewoman Sun Limin came to ask me whether I was going to write the statements. I told her, "No way." She then dragged me down to the floor in a fury and handcuffed me. I was only able to breath very weakly after several days' torture. I lost consciousness a moment later. In the middle of the night, I lost consciousness again. The police then called in the doctor. The doctor said, "Her blood pressure is too high!" Police officer Zhang Xiaodan ordered that my blanket and all the boards except two be removed from my bed. They put me on the two boards and handcuffed my two hands to the bed frame over my head. Then they pulled my handcuffs very tight. The intense pain caused me to lose consciousness again. A moment later I woke up. I was handcuffed like that for 31 days.

Due to the torture, I was very weak and could not walk. The police then ordered people to support me when I walked. I felt dizzy and could hardly walk just one step. I could not raise my arms and had no feeling on my thumb and index finger. The other three fingers were also numb. My shoulders and hands became more and more numb everyday. I could not take care of myself and the fellow practitioners had to help me with everything. However, the police did nothing and even said I was putting on an act. Mu Zhenjuan even pulled my arm up high and swung it around. They police were so inhumane.

My family came to visit. Upon seeing me, they were all shocked. I had been very healthy and in good condition when I was taken from home. But now I was tortured and my health debilitated to such a degree. My family went to see the leaders. They met the chief He Qiang and requested that I receive medical treatment. But the camp authorities refused to release me. My family then went to the prosecutor residing in the labour camp. I told him the fact that I was handcuffed and forced to lay flat my back for a month. The policewoman Sun Limin, who was responsible for my torture, suddenly was diagnosed with heart disease at midnight of the same day and did not come to work for a month.

My term expired on November 20. However, after my family went to see the prosecutor, the chief He Qiang, Chen Chunmei, Zhang Xiaodan, Yu Wenbing and police in other units began fabricating stories. Mu Zhenjuan told me that my term was extended for another 7 months but Zhang Xiao said the extension was 5 months. I said, "You have no reason to extend my term. If the term was extended, I would have to sign it. But I never signed anything." Mu Zhenjuan then said, "It would not be so easy for you to go. You can't leave unless we let you go." From then on, every time when she was on duty, she would torture me. If I was laying down, she would force me to stand for extended periods. Since I had headaches and weak arms, she then ordered others to position me. Two supporting boxes under the bed were used. But those thugs intentionally set them unevenly and forced me to lie on the two uneven boxes, making my back very painful. When my fellow practitioners found wooden boards to make the bed even, Mu Zhenjuan then cursed loudly. My family found out that my blood pressure was rising. So they went to see the chief He Qiang. He Qiang then told them, "She is fine. No need for her to see a doctor."

One day in October, I came back to the cell from the cafeteria. Two criminals carried me when I was unable to walk and started falling behind the others. Mu Zhenjuan then directed the criminals to drag me. The criminals then dragged me with force and I soon lost consciousness. At places where nobody could see, the police often beat or kicked me. One day in November, on the way back from the workshop, another practitioner, whose leg was injured due to longtime shackling, and I, were walking at the end of the group. Police officer Li Yongbo cursed and told the criminals to drag me forward. The criminals saw my poor condition and dared not to drag me. Even though I was severely tortured, the authorities still required me to do the forced labour everyday.

By November 20, my three-year term ended. The police tortured me so brutally yet they wanted to extend my term by another 7 months. Because I was injured as a result of the handcuffing, the vicious police involved, He Qing, Zhang Xiaodan, Yu Wenbin were afraid of me suing them so they did not want to release me. My family went to see them but they just hid away. Eventually my family found chief Xu Lifeng, and he said, "Your sister is still able to work. You don't need to look here and there." He implied that the camp agreed to release me but the unit team did not agree, meaning the unit head He Qing, Chen Chunmei, Zhang Xiaodan, Yu Wenbin, and Mu Zhenjuan did not agree. The police also forced practitioners to watch propaganda videos on TV as part of their brainwashing tactics. I did not agree to sit there, but they still forced me into the room. I would not watch. Mu Zhenjuan then ordered criminals to drag me over there. But seeing my poor physical condition, the criminals were afraid of the responsibility if I was injured further. So Mu just dragged me by herself, cursing, "Why aren't you dead yet? I am just going to torture you. It is so easy to play with you." Mu Zhenjuan repeatedly told me, "The unit has extended your term. Ask you family to spend some money to get you out of here." I said, "You are violating the law while a member of a law enforcement team." Mu said, "We just won't let you go and we will detain you here until you die. Just watch." From their conversation that I overheard, all other police knew that those few people were afraid of releasing me after they had tortured me to such a degree. Those police were very afraid of me suing them.

I was released on December 10, more than 20 days after my term had ended. My coworkers came to see me and told me that they went to the labour camp several days ago and were rejected. The police also shouted at them. My coworkers saw that I was injured and disable due to the torture. They all felt very angry. They said that they did not believe the forced labour camp could be so vicious and evil but now they saw it with their own eyes.

I had been doing a good job in my work unit. Every group wanted me. I behave according to the requirement of Dafa, not fighting with others and considering others first. I also worked very hard. So the group leaders said, "I am going to ask everyone in the group to practise Falun Gong from now on." My coworker often had discussions and they told me, "The TV propaganda said how bad Falun Gong is. But you are such a good person. It seems like the TV is lying."

Chinese version available at http://minghui.org/mh/articles/2004/2/16/67558.html