Since August 2000, Baimalong Female Forced Labour Camp has used all kinds of methods to torment Falun Gong practitioners both mentally and physically. These methods include segregated, forced brainwashing, illegally extended forced labour terms, various types of corporal punishment such as hanging, shocking with electric batons, restricted toilet use, long-time sleep deprivation, confinement in solitary compartments, and other tortures and abuses of human rights.
1. Segregated, Forced Brainwashing
No. 7 Division specializes in detention of Falun Gong practitioners. It has three sub-divisions: "Reformed Sub-division," "Non-Reformed Sub-division" and "Fortification-fight Sub-division." Small numbers of practitioners are sent to the Reformed Sub-division, where most of the inmates are former practitioners who have gone astray and have collaborated with police. There the collaborators (1) will brainwash the practitioners in a segregated environment. Only a few practitioners are assigned to each cell. The practitioners are told, "Do not expect to go home if you do not give up Falun Gong. You will be sent to the northwest part of China." Except for using the toilet, the practitioners are not allowed to walk out of the door. The collaborators bring food and washing water back to the cell and tell the practitioners things like, "Look, you're not thinking of others, you're just bringing trouble for us." Practitioners are forced to sit on a small bench and read defamatory books, watch slanderous TV programmes, or listen to the collaborators slandering Falun Gong. The police permit the collaborators to attack or curse at practitioners at will. Practitioners are forced to sit on the small stools only, and no walking or moving around is allowed, or they will be beaten or tied up. If practitioners refute the collaborators' lies or defend Falun Gong, their mouths are sealed shut with tape or stuffed with a dirty sock, a dirty rag, or a towel. These collaborators can beat or slap practitioners at any time. Practitioner Xiong Ruilian was forced to sit cross-legged in the lotus position because she did the Falun Dafa exercises, and then was tied up with rope for several hours. The extreme pain made her cry out in pain continuously.
For refusing to wear the inmate insignia, practitioner Cao Xianghui from Yueyang City was forbidden to use the toilet. To prevent practitioners from encouraging each other through eye contact or hand gestures, a rule was put in place to allow only one practitioner at a time to go to the toilet. When a practitioner goes to use the toilet, all other cells close their doors. The collaborators follow the practitioner to the toilet and monitor everything. The practitioners are constantly surrounded by a group of collaborators. These collaborators attack, abuse, and physically and mentally wreak havoc with the Dafa practitioners. Most who have gone through such experiences feel that the brainwashing is more painful than any physical torture.
2. Illegally extending forced labour terms or arbitrary detention beyond the labour term
In order to increase the so-called "reformation rate," Baimalong Forced Labour Camp uses term reduction as an incentive for the collaborators to abuse, torment, and harass the practitioners ever more actively. For "excellent performance" in reforming several practitioners, some collaborators have their labour terms dramatically reduced. For example, a one-year labour term might be reduced to three months. To maintain the "reform rate," the labour camp often orders collaborators to slander Dafa and Teacher Li and answer questions. If anyone shows any sign of righteous thoughts toward "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance", their term is extended. In such a way, they hope to erode and wipe out the practitioners' belief and righteous thoughts.
For those steadfast practitioners who persist in their belief, the labour camp deducts 600 points from a so-called "Ideology Reformation" mark every month, adds six more days to the practitioner's labour term, and administers additional punishment. The labour camp guards ignore the Forced Labour Bureau rules, as well as the rules of the labour camp itself, and arbitrarily extend practitioners' labour terms. For example, the Forced Labour Bureau has a rule specifying that, "Without any major transgression, any detainee in labour camps cannot have more than 12 days per month added on to their labour term." However in September 2002, police officer Fang Fen announced, "Practitioner Chen Ouxiang and others did not make their beds satisfactorily, therefore, 18 days will be added to their labour terms." The labour camp may still illegally detain those who have served their terms. For example, in the spring of 2002, practitioner Liu Junli from Zhuzhou City was still being detained even though the deadline of her term had expired. When asked for the reason, Administration Section head Fang and Sub-division head Zheng Xia answered, "The application to extend Liu Yun's labour term, a one to three month extension, has been submitted to the Forced Labour Bureau. We are awaiting their reply." He was then asked, "Since there is no official document on file to extend the term, when the deadline has passed, she should be released." Fang retorted, "The bureau will not reject the request." The forced labour camp often extends practitioners' labour terms with excuses that they can't even find in their own rules.
3. Beatings, hangings, electric shock, sleep deprivation, and restricted toilet use - violations of basic human rights
Baimalong Forced Labour Camp perpetrators tortured the steadfast practitioners with all kinds of ways, such as beatings, hangings, electric shock, sleep deprivation, toilet use curtailment and so on, which severely violated their basic human rights. In March and April of 2001, during evening roll call in the "Non-reformed Division," when asking Falun Gong practitioners if they still would practise, those who answered "yes" would be punished by being forced to stand in the hallway overnight. If practitioners disobeyed an order, the male guards would shock practitioners with electric batons. Some would be hung outside on the metal clothes-drying poles. Others would be handcuffed together to a metal window frame over night. If one person moved, the others' handcuffs would become tighter. By the next morning, the handcuffs would have cut deeply into the flesh of the practitioners' hands and it would be difficult to open them. Practitioner Liu Yuwei refused to wear the inmate insignia. Several police officers shocked her with several high-voltage batons for an entire day. Her skin and flesh was burnt black as a result. Cao Jiangzhen had several ribs broken from beatings. In the summer of 2002, practitioners Tang Yong and Wen Xiaoping were confined to a solitary compartment. It was hot and the temperature reached as high as 39o C. (about 95oF). They were not allowed to a take showers or change clothes for seven days. When they were finally released from the solitary compartment, their clothes were covered with a layer of caked-on salt from the dried sweat.
In July 2002, a "Fortification Fight" division was set up, led by the division head Zheng Xia, and directed by police officers Zhao Jinyue and Ding Cailan,. Practitioners were often sent to the "Fortification Fight" division. Police officers Huang Wenmin and Ou yelled, "If you refuse to wear inmate insignia, recite the labour camp regulations, or write the 'Guarantee Statement,' (2) forget sleep or using the rtoilet." They cuffed practitioners to metal beds overnight in all kinds of painful positions. Practitioners would be forbidden to sleep at all, or allowed to sleep only one or two hours per night. One practitioner in her fifties or older was refused toilet use and eventually relieved herself in her pants. Practitioner Chang Lan was handcuffed to a metal bed with both arms stretched apart and a small bench pushing against her back. Before long she was shaking and sweating from the extreme pain and kept vomiting.
Practitioner Yu Yingzhu from Hangzhou City was handcuffed to a metal bed for seven or eight nights, with both arms stretched apart. She was not allowed to sleep and was forced to stand straight without touching the bed. Police urged the drug offenders to hit her with a club whenever she closed the eyes. Ms. Yu passed out from this torture. After she returned from medical treatment, the same torture was repeated until she passed out again. Then the torture was repeated yet again. Since the "Fortification Fight" division's regulations and associated regulations violate human rights, practitioners Wu Ying and Lu Yali reported the situation to the pertinent authorities, such as the assistant head of the labour camp Zhao Guibao, the general secretary of the disciplinary committee Zhao Jinyue, and Bo Wei in the Inspection Office, who was from the Court Prosecutor's office in the Shifeng District, Zhuzhou City. The practitioners petitioned to have the "Fortification Fight" division abolished, but no changes were made, and the abuse, mistreatment, and torment under this persecution policy continued. On October 26, 2002, practitioner Chen Ouxiang was tortured to death in the "Fortification Fight" division.
4. Inhumane force-feeding
The persecutors force-feed practitioners who hold hunger strikes to protest the persecution. They forcibly open the practitioner's teeth with fire-tongs used in a coal stove, and use sections of bamboo measuring 15 cm by 3 cm, with one end sharpened, to conduct this force-feeding. Practitioners are held tightly by their head, hands, and feet. While the practitioner's nose is plugged, the bamboo section is inserted into practitioner's mouth with force. Porridge or high-density salt water is poured in through the hollow bamboo section. The guards said to us viciously, "The number of cups of porridge force-fed to you will be equal to the number of days you have been on hunger strike." Sometimes the persecutors cover up the end of the bamboo section outside with a paper cup to cut off the air supply. Other times they inserted the bamboo section so deeply that it pressed up against the throat, which made it difficult for practitioners to swallow the food, and occasionally they pour the food so fast that it was impossible to swallow. Many practitioners' breathing would be chocked off during the force-feeding. Practitioner Zuo Shucun from Changsha City died from such abusive force-feeding. Practitioner Wang Fuhua lost two front teeth from having her teeth forcibly pried apart for force-feeding.
5. Using drug offender inmates or prostitutes to monitor and torture practitioners
Baimalong Forced Labour Camp violators claim that the inmates openly elect their leaders, assisting police to manage them. This is not true for practitioners. The labour camp keeps transferring drug offenders and prostitutes from the regular division to the No. 7 Division, and assigns them to monitor practitioners. They are given books and pens and are ordered to record the practitioners' every word and action . This is used to evaluate practitioners and to decide whether or not to extend their forced labour terms. In August 2002, drug offender Liu Xiaoyu stole a practitioner's money and beat the practitioners. After her behaviour was exposed, she was punished with an extended labour term and transferred, but less than a day later she was elected to transfer back to the "Fortification Fight" division as an inmate leader. Liu Xiaoyu then became more vicious in persecuting practitioners. Practitioner Chen Chujun wrote a letter to the provincial forced labor bureau, stating that using such types of inmates to monitor practitioner was unreasonable and illegal, but no action was taken. Right now the labour camp still uses those types of inmates to monitor practitioners.
6. Sending practitioners to mental hospitals and injecting them with drugs
Baimalong Forced Labour Camp sends steadfast Dafa practitioners to a mental hospital for further abuse, mistreatment, and torment. Practitioner Yang Youguang, 62, insisted on doing the Falun Gong exercises and reciting teachings. In September 2000, the labour camp claimed she had "schizophrenia" and sent her to the Zhuzhou City Mental Hospital. According to regulations, the labour camp should refuse to accept any patient without mental problems; if discovered later that the inmate has a mental problem, the detainee should be released immediately. However, healthy practitioners like Yang Youguang have been sent to the mental hospital.
Labour camp authorities inject drugs into hunger-striking practitioners. Practitioner Xia Ting, because she held a hunger strike, was forced to go to the infirmary. According to an inside source, she was injected with the psychotropic drug Thorazine. (3) Dafa practitioner Ms. Xia Ting suffered from slowed reactions, almost total amnesia, and lost her sense of balance, making her unable to walk straight and always bumping into walls. Other practitioners on hunger strikes were also forced to go to the infirmary for injections. When they were released, though, almost all of their family members were required to pay several thousand or even tens of thousands of Yuan (4) for so-called "medical bills" in order to have their family member released from of the labour camp.
7. Labour camps try hard to cover up the persecution
Baimalong Forced Labour Camp tries very hard to cover up their crimes and tries to block any information from leaving the camp. When Dafa practitioners Zuo Shucun and Chen Ouxiang were tortured to death, the whole labour camp was under curfew. Their family members were told that the cause of death was illness. In The "Fortification Fight" division, cells hold only one practitioner each. When a practitioner goes to the toilet, all other cells must close their doors, so there are no witnesses to torture. Those inmates who are selected to assist in the persecution normally have a two or three year labour term. The few with short terms are usually those who are very active in aiding and abetting in the persecution. The practitioners are frequently transferred to other divisions to avoid having eyewitnesses to the abuses. Practitioners' belongings undergo a careful, monthly search in the name of a "safety check," to prevent the leaking of evidence to the outside. The letters to practitioners' families or from practitioners outside the camp are checked carefully. Some practitioners' letters to family are intercepted. If a practitioner has torture wounds, requests for visits from family members are refused. In the spring of 2002, a practitioner wrote a letter to the Court's Prosecutor and to the Forced Labour Bureau to report the situations in this labour camp. The practitioner received no reply. Later, the letter writer was transferred to another sub-division. When asking the police whether the letter was delivered, they feigned ignorance.
The Baimalong Forced Labour Camp administers such brutal mental and physical tortures to Dafa practitioners, but they claim that they are simply "helping" and "saving" practitioners.
Note:
Because of their "outstanding achievements" in persecuting Falun Gong, the Baimalong Forced Labour Camp was awarded the "Model of Education and Reformation Unit in the Judicial System" by the State Judicial Department in August 2000. In August of 2001, it was awarded the "Model of Fighting against [slanderous word removed]" by seven state-level departments. In April 2002, it was awarded the "First Class Hero Collective in the State Forced Labour System." In August 2001, the head of the Baimalong Forced Labour Camp, Huang Yongliang, and the head of the No. 7 Division, Ding Cailan, were awarded the "Advanced Personnel in Fighting against [slanderous word removed]." In August 2002, the labour camp was awarded the "First Class Hero Collective" in the state forced labour system for its achievement in education and reform. The No. 7 Division was awarded the "Second Class Hero Collective." The "Fortification Fight" division was awarded the "Third Class Hero Collective." The following police officers were awarded the "Second Class Hero" - Fang Fen, Huang Yongliang, Ding Cailan, and Yuan Lihua. The following police officers were awarded the "Third Class Hero" - Lu Yunquan, Tan Xiangqian, Wang Nianhua, Wan Wei, Chen Dongxia, and Zhao Shuaiqun.
All these "awards" will be used as evidence in future trials against them.
Those responsible for the persecution include the following:
Huang Yongliang, head of the Baimalong Female Forced Labour Camp
Yi Jin'er, political instructor
Zhao Guibao, assistant labour camp head
Zhao Jinyue, general secretary of the discipline committee
Fang, head of administration section
Peng
Ding Cailan, head of the formerly No. 7 Division
Yuan Lihua, head of No. 1 Subdivision, formerly No. 7 Division
Yin Bin, head of No. 2 Subdivision, formerly No. 7 Division
Zheng Xia, head of No. 3 Subdivision, formerly No. 7 Division
Tan Xiangqian, head of Special Police Division
Fang Fen, police officer
Huang Wenmin, police officer
(1) Collaborators are former Falun Gong practitioners who have turned against Dafa due to brainwashing and torture.
(2) "Guarantee Statement" - A statement to declare that one is remorseful for practising Falun Gong and guarantees not to practise Falun Gong again, not to go to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong, and never again associate with any Falun Dafa practitioners.
(3) The psychotropic drug Thorazine (also known as Aminazin, Chlorpromazine, Largactil, Thorazine or Wintermin) is a strong tranquilizer that is used in the treatment of psychiatric patients. Thorazine can have powerful side effects, such as tardive dyskinesia (a serious, irreversible neurological disorder), tardive dementia (a global deterioration of her mind and mental faculties caused by the drugs), general dulling of awareness, emotional numbing, and cognitive dysfunction. Symptoms of tardive dyskinesia involve uncontrollable movement of various body parts, including the body trunk, legs, arms, fingers, mouth, lips, or tongue. According to Amnesty International's medical advice, these drugs are not in themselves sinister. There are specific disorders for which they are prescribed, but they should be administered by qualified doctors, and their use monitored. In the light of cases of torture and ill-treatment of Falun Gong practitioners, and in the absence of evidence that they suffer from any psychiatric disorder, it is evident that the administration of such drugs is a punitive measure. In other words, Falun Gong practitioners have been inappropriately administered psychotropic drugs in order to punish them for their spiritual belief in Falun Gong.
(4) Yuan is the Chinese currency. The average monthly salary of an urban worker in China is 500 Yuan.
Chinese version available at http://minghui.org/mh/articles/2004/4/17/72538.html
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