Policewoman Takes Revenge on a Dafa Practitioner Who Spoke in Accordance with Justice in Shenzhen City Detention Centre

On the morning of February 18, 2004, the Shenzhen City Women's Association brought gifts in honour of Women's Day (March 8) to the women imprisoned in the Futian Detention Centre in Shenzhen City. Photographers and reporters accompanied the visitors. Zheng Yuyan, a Falun Gong practitioner imprisoned in West #2 cell, and who had been on hunger strike for two days, spoke to the leader of the Women's Association and the reporters about the true situation of Falun Gong and the persecution. She said, "I have a grievance! Falun Gong is falsely accused! The accusations and persecution against Falun Gong violate our constitution, and all the rumours and accusations against us are fabricated lies! Falun Gong teaches people to be good, and to live by the principles of 'Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance.' We are in no way a danger to society nor do we hurt people! There are more than a hundred million people from over sixty countries practising Falun Gong. All the people in the world know that Falun Dafa is great."

After the visitors left, policewoman prison guard Zhou Li stormed into Zheng Yuyan's cell, harshly demanding an explanation, "What are you doing here!?" Zheng Yuyan answered righteously, "I am expressing my grievance. I am exercising my rights as a citizen. The constitution endows me with this right." Later that afternoon, Zhou Li came back to the cell and tried to stir up hatred against Zheng among the prisoners by telling lies, saying, "Because of Zheng Yuyan's behaviour today, the higher-ups will not approve any requests from the Futian prisoners to reduce their sentences because they think the prisoners here in Futian do not obey the rules." She added, "It is okay with me because the higher-ups know that it is the Falun Gong practitioners who are not behaving themselves. The higher-ups are not blaming me and not deducting my salary at all. But you, Zheng Yuyan, have to be punished severely for your behaviour." She continued, "We'll see if you can shout out grievances now!" She then ordered the chief inmate to gather up a gang of prisoners to cover Zheng's mouth with a strip of wide plastic tape, and tried to force Zheng to kneel down in front of all of the prisoners. Five or six people came to tie up Zheng. Some bound her arms and legs while others wrapped tape around her head so as to cover her mouth. Zheng resisted kneeling down, and pulled the tape off her mouth three times, yelling loudly: "It is my right as a citizen to express my grievances! To do so is not against the constitution anywhere in China! Zhou Li is persecuting Falun Gong! Your actions violate the International Human Rights Covenant signed by China with the United Nations, and violate the regulations that the police in the detention centre should obey."

When Zhou Li saw that even five or six people could not subdue Zheng, she then came up herself to bind Zheng's arms behind her back, and kicked Zheng in the back violently. Zheng fell down to the floor. Zhou then ordered all the people trample on Zheng's calves to force Zheng to kneel down in front of the prisoners. Although Zheng's mouth was wrapped up by tape and stuffed with a towel she still spoke out loudly with righteousness, "Force can never change a person's mind! If you are capable, you can only change me with truth!" When Zhou Li realized that she could not break the will of this Falun Gong practitioner nor even defend her actions rationally, she ran away in a rage.

With both of her arms bound tightly behind her and two people standing on her calves, Zheng was forced to kneel down in front of all the prisoners for about half an hour. After she was released, her arms and hands were swollen and bruised very severely. Her knees and insteps were also injured, due to her being forced down and trampled upon.

Zhou Li had been a special kind of military policewoman and had been stationed on the border frontier for more than ten years. She has only been working in Futian Detention Centre for about one month after transferring from the military police team. The methods that she uses to insult, mistreat, and punish Falun Gong practitioners violate the regulations set up for detention centre police.

After this event, Zhou Li threatened that except for the chief inmate, no other prisoner was allowed to talk to Zheng. Zheng was forced to stay in the corner right next to the toilet. Even after Zheng had been on hunger strike for more than ten days, Zhou Li still ordered the prisoners to drag Zheng out of bed to deprive her of sleep.

Zheng always strongly resisted all abuse by the police and the prisoners in the detention centre. Eventually, on March 9, 2004, the 25th day of her hunger strike, and two months and five days after being abducted, Zheng, with her righteous thoughts and energy, escaped while being transferred to a labour camp.

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2004/4/25/73115.html