Exposing the Crimes at the Hehuakeng and Handan Forced Labour Camps

In November 2005, the Falun Gong practitioners (about 13 of them) who refused to give up Falun Gong were transferred from Hehaukeng Forced Labour Camp in Tangshan to Handan Forced Labour Camp for fear that their brutal torture would be discovered by the international investigation organisation. The following is the account of the persecution the Falun Gong practitioners suffered.

The persecution that Li Zhen and Wang Xiulan, husband and wife, suffered:

Li Zhen and Wang Xiulan started to practise Falun Gong in 1997.

On the morning of July 20th, 1999, the vicious policemen from Kaiping Local Police Station, Zhang Zhiqiang and two others, broke into their home. Without showing any documents, they seized Li Zhen and detained him in Pingquzhuang Elementary School for several days. Because Li remained steadfast in his belief, he was transferred to Kaiping Criminal Police Team where he was detained. He was not allowed to make any phone calls. His family members were not allowed to visit him. He was forced to undergo brainwashing.

In March 2000, Li Zhen and 12 other practitioners sent letters of appeal to different levels of government offices. The letter to Kaiping Town was withheld by some vicious persons. Hence, the 13 of them were arrested and taken to the Kaiping Local Police Station. Then they were transferred to the Kaiping Criminal Police Team where they were detained for more then 10 days. After that, they were transferred to the Detention Centre in Changningdao where they were detained for 15 days.

In 2001, Li Zhen wrote two letters to explain the truth about Dafa. He handed them to Gao Shukui who works at the Kaiping Appeals Office. A few days later, in the evening, three persons from Quzhuang Team and Zhang Zhiqiang from Kaiping Criminal Team went to Li Zhen's residence and ransacked the place. After that, they took Li to the Kaiping Local Police Station. Mr. Li was locked inside a metal cage which measured about 1.2 metres. He could not stand up in there. Ten days later, he was transferred to the #1 Detention Centre in Tangshan City. Mr. Li remained steadfast with his belief in Dafa. He stated that the so-called guarantee statement to give up practising Dafa that he was forced to write was invalid. For this reason only, Li was imprisoned for nine months. In winter, 40 buckets of cold water were poured on him; he was hit on the face numerous times; was forced to stand for long periods of time without sleeping; was forced to sit on an iron stool; and was locked inside a small cell, etc. Eight months later, he was transferred to the brainwashing class in Kaiping where he was persecuted for over a month. Five thousand yuan¹ were extorted from him. Due to the long-term persecution, Mr. Li suffered physical and mental damage. At 40, he lost almost all of his hair, and what remained was all white.

In April 2002, policeman Zhang Zhiqiang brought three other police to Li's residence and ransacked his home. They also hit and kicked Li and Wang Xiulan. The police then arrested Li and Wang and detained them in the basement of the Kaiping Local Police Station where they hit Li and Wang's faces, and kicked and hit them with brooms. As a result, Wang was unconscious for 48 hours. It was only then that the police notified the family, who carried her to the emergency room.

In August 2002, Kaiping Local Police Station collaborated with Duan Xianglan from Quzhuang Team, who used 3000 yuan and sent the police, Zhang Zhiqiang to arrest Wang Xiulan, and Chen Xiulian and detained them in the brainwashing class in Kaiping for over a month. Because of the torture they suffered, Ms. Wang continuously spit blood. The police then had no choice but to send her to the hospital. In the meantime, they forced her to sign the three statements².

At about 10:00 p.m. on October 19th, 2004, six policemen headed by Liu Shuting from Kaiping Local Police Station ransacked Li Zhen's residence again. They took away a tape recorder and several books. They arrested Mr. Li and two other visiting practitioners then. Altogether, 13 practitioners were arrested and sentenced to forced labour.

In Hehuakeng Forced Labour Camp in Tangshan, Li Zhen refused to renounce his belief in Dafa, hence he was shocked with high voltage electricity, hit on his face, and forced to stand for a long period of time. As a result, he was very weak. In November 2005, he was secretly detained in the Labour Camp in Handan. His family members have still not been notified. They are neither allowed to call Li Zhen, nor to visit him. Kind hearted people, please help rescue Li Zhen.

Sun Jianmin's experience:

Sun Jianmin is 58 years old. Both he and his wife practise Falun Gong. They were physically and mentally healthy. They had a good life.

On May 24th, 2001, more then ten practitioners went to Kaiping Park to practise the exercises in the cypress wood. The police from the 610 Office³ in Kaiping and Kaiping Local Police Station surrounded the practice site. Li Guojun from the local police station gathered some thugs who hit and kicked the practitioners. They used clubs and leather belts to hit the practitioners. Practitioner Meng Qingfu was beaten and lay unconscious for over four hours. The responsible persons were Yang, who was the division head, Liu Dexing, and Ma. The practitioners were bruised all over, and they were detained in Kaiping Local Police Station for over 20 days. After that, they were transferred to the #1 Detention Centre in Tangshan where they were detained for over seven months. One woman practitioner escaped, but the authorities then detained her husband as a substitute.

On October 19th, 2004, Sun Jianmin's residence was ransacked by Kaiping Local Police Station. The Dafa materials and video tapes were taken away. The policemen, Dai Jianjun and Wang Bao brought some other evil men to do the search. They also used brutal torture, such as using high voltage electric clubs to shock his head and the whole body. These tortures caused Sun to suffer from cerebral hemorrhage. Police Zhang Fan kicked and hit Sun. After being tortured for two days, Sun was transferred to the Detention Centre in Tangshan where he was tortured for 28 days. After that, he was transferred to Hehuakeng Forced Labour Camp and was sentenced to three years of forced labour. Later, he was tortured to the point of illness. On October 19th, 2005, he was released on bail for medical treatment.

A brief description of the persecution experienced by Li Zhen and Zhang Li in Hehuake Forced Labour Camp in Tangshan:

They were forced to stand for a long period of time. As a result, their legs were swollen, and they couldn't walk. They could not stand still either, hence they fell, causing their mouths and noses to bleed. However, the prison guards continued to torture them.

The prison guards ordered the inmates to beat the practitioners. If the clubs were not enough, they would hit their faces. They also used the handle of a pickaxe to hit the practitioners, which caused the practitioners to be bruised all over their bodies. The pain was hard to bear. The practitioners also had to endure other tortures. Zhang Wenliang was not allowed to sleep.

Note

1. "Yuan" is the Chinese currency; 500 yuan is equal to the average monthly income of an urban worker in China.

2. "Three Statements": Practitioners are coerced under brainwashing and torture to write "Repentance Statement," "Guarantee Statement" or 'Dissociation Statement" as proof that they have given up their belief. In the statement, the practitioner is forced to admit remorse for practising Falun Gong, promise to give up Falun Gong, and never again associate with other practitioners or go to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong.

3. "The 610 office" is an agency specifically created to persecute Falun Gong, with absolute power over each level of administration in the Party and all other political and judiciary systems.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2006/6/28/131643.html