Pressure from Former Chinese President Jiang Zemin's Faction Led to the Systematic Campaign of Atrocities in China's Labour Camps

During the past several years, many people have not had a clear understanding of why such brutal tortures are used on Falun Gong practitioners in the labour camps and prisons in China. They think it is the result of individual actions or local policy. But this is not the case. The severity of the persecution is the result of widespread pressure applied from the top down throughout the Party ranks by Jiang's faction. As a result, the atrocities have been carried out systematically throughout the entire country.

Since the persecution started, many officials have come to realise that Falun Gong practitioners are good people, and they no longer want to be involved in the persecution. Many police in various labour camps have publicly admitted that practitioners are good people and that Falun Dafa teaches people to be good. However, under intense political pressure, they are forced to get involved.

In 2002 when I was detained at the Changlingzi Forced Labour Camp in Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province, I repeatedly heard the instructor of the fourth brigade Wang Yuou claim that he once attended a conference with director Shi Changjing and the assistant director of the education office, Yang Yu, in Beijing. During the conference, it was pointed out that the "transformation rate" of Falun Gong practitioners in Heilongjiang area labour camps was the lowest in the country. An ultimatum was given, that if the rate did not improve within a certain time, all related personnel would be removed from their offices. Thus during the conference, each labour camp shared experiences and planned how to improve their "performance."

After the conference concluded, the Harbin area legislative system held its own conference. The director of the Harbin City Legislative Bureau said furiously to all the labour camp directors, "If I am to be removed from my office over this issue, I will remove all of you first!" As a result, another round of persecution was launched. Each step was carefully planned. For example, each labour camp picked some thugs to form "specially-managed classes." They also selected various torture tools and methods, many of which can lead to death without leaving any marks. Such methods include hanging in an iron cage, pushing, splitting, etc. For practitioners who were tortured to death, they claimed that they died from disease. In order to cover up their crimes, they sent practitioners who were in critical condition to Wanjia Hospital, which is affiliated with Wanjia Forced Labour Camp. They could be free of responsibility after the hospital vouched that the death resulted from illness. As far as I know, practitioners Zhang Tao and Li Hongbin died on the way to Wanjia Hospital. Many others, after being sent to the hospital, not only received no medical treatment, but also suffered further torture and brutality.

With the incitement and encouragement from their superiors, the guards in the labour camps turned more vicious and ruthless. They torture practitioners with every possible means, such as shocking with high-voltage batons, hanging and beating, "sewing" with a needle, burning with cigarettes, various forms of extreme physical punishment, etc. (for detail please see Brutal Torture Methods Used on Falun Dafa Practitioners at the Changlinzi Forced Labour Camp (Illustrations)) The director, Shi Changjing, publicly claimed, "What is a prison? It is hell on earth!"