The Brutal Persecution at Fangqiang Forced Labour Camp in Jiangsu Province

In December 1999, under direct orders from the 610 Office¹ located in Jiangsu Province, Fangqiang Forced Labour Camp officially became the primary location for "transforming²" Falun Dafa practitioners. They use the hypocritical terms "education" and "salvation" as a guise, and "transformation" as an excuse to brutally persecute Falun Dafa practitioners in the forced labour camp. Their methods of persecution are extremely vicious, but accounts of the brutality are rarely heard beyond the walls of the Fangqiang Forced Labour Camp.

The persecution can generally be divided into three stages:

The first stage occurred between December 1999 and early 2001. It focused on using excessive labour as the main means of persecution. Beatings, verbal abuse, sleep deprivation for prolonged periods of time and stealing funds (usually given to practitioners by family members for buying necessities from the camp store) were used as secondary forms of persecution alongside the hard labour. The arduous labour was aimed at physically torturing practitioners’ bodies, while the secondary forms of persecution were meant to destroy their will power. They hoped to achieve "transformation," meaning to force practitioners to relinquish their cultivation of Falun Dafa.

Here is just one example: A Falun Dafa practitioner, surnamed Wu, was a university graduate who had never done any farm work. He was ordered to remove mud from a frozen river right after the Chinese Lunar New Year. Normally, forced labour workers would wear thick waterproof boots to do this job. He was told to complete the job with bare feet. They wouldn’t allow him to buy a pair of waterproof boots. As a result, his feet were always stuck in the mud. The guards assigned two people to a pallet for moving the mud. They had to carry the mud from the river floor to the embankment. Mr. Wu’s pallet always received a few more shovels of mud before he had to carry it towards shore. His partner had very poor vision, but the guards insisted he lead the way to shore. The load was too heavy and his vision too poor, therefore he slipped often and they would fall into the river. The labour supervisor would not help them, instead, he would yell about how lazy the college graduate was being. Then he would beat him while brutally stomping him into the deep mud. This was the main reason why Mr. Wu could never accomplish his "assignment." Every night when others showered and got ready to sleep, Mr. Wu was forced to stand by the toilet bowl until 11:00 p.m.

Mr. Wu managed to endure the persecution despite being tortured every day. One day, he slipped off the slope because of the heavy load he was carrying, and as usual the labour supervisor brutally stomped him into the mud. Suddenly, all the forced labour workers stopped their work and glared at the labour supervisor. Perhaps they were unable to watch this human tragedy anymore; maybe their consciences had awakened. They questioned the supervisor, "We are all here to do forced labour and suffer. Why are you treating him this way?" The supervisor replied, "Do you think I really want to treat him this way? I have no choice."

The second stage of persecution began in early 2001 and continued through 2003. It mainly focused on "transforming" Falun Dafa practitioners through other methods.

Since arduous forced labour, reprimands and severe sleep deprivation (prolonged periods of not being allowed to sleep) had failed to destroy the willpower of most Falun Dafa practitioners, the camp decided to change their tactics. They invited a group of collaborators³ led by Cai Bi, to use the tactic they called, "Using Fa⁴ to Destroy the Fa." This method uses twisted understanding to attack Falun Dafa’s teachings and its founder Teacher Li. They hoped to destroy the practitioners’ faith, so they would give up practising Falun Dafa. This group used all the knowledge of "transforming" that they had previously acquired at Masanjia Forced Labour Camp to mislead Falun Dafa practitioners into abandoning their beliefs. At the same time, they also compelled the practitioners' work unit managers, partners, parents, siblings and friends to persuade practitioners to give up their belief. If the practitioners remained steadfast, their sentences would be lengthened, their children would be suspended from school, they would be fired from their jobs or their positions in school would be taken away.

Once "transformed," individuals are forced write what are called the "Five Statements." These include the guarantee statement – a vow not to practise Falun Dafa again; the repentance statement – an admission of guilt for practising Falun Dafa; a "disassociation statement" – disassociating oneself fully from Falun Dafa and Teacher Li; a "criticising statement" – criticising Falun Dafa and Teacher Li. If any practitioner relinquished their practice of Falun Dafa, they would be given better food and provided with various forms of entertainment. They could play card games, chess, watch movies (most of which contain content slandering Falun Dafa and Teacher Li) and even get out of forced labour. The persecutors know that practitioners should cultivate only one school of cultivation, so the police made those involved in brainwashing the practitioners display Taiji in front of them. Especially, after forming the Second Brigade specifically for persecuting Falun Dafa practitioners in the labour camp, the camp often invited external "assistant education groups" (groups of collaborators) to spread their absurd theories. The perpetrator in charge of "transforming" practitioners even stood up on a stage and criticised Teacher Li and Falun Dafa.

If a practitioner was not "transformed," another round of physical tortures began along with periods of confinement, and prison terms were extended. Beating steadfast practitioners with electric batons was a common scene. At that time, all the practitioners in the Third Brigade of Fangqiang Forced Labour Camp went on hunger strikes to protest against such persecution. The main reason for the protest was that cultivators of Falun Dafa follow "Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance" to be good people. They did not commit any crimes and should be released, immediately! But, they were all brutally persecuted using electric batons and various other tortures by the personnel brought in by the secretary of the forced labour camp. Falun Dafa practitioner Dr. Zhang (PhD.) refused to be transformed, so he was assigned to a group with two extremely strong labourers. No matter what work was assigned, he always got the dirtiest and most tiring work. During the barley drying season, under the scorching sun, Dr. Zhang was assigned to clean the output end of the winnower. Barley, dry grasses and dust blew towards his head and face, leaving layers and layers of dirt on him. Dr. Zhang was covered with mud before long. At night, the perpetrators made Professor Zhang wear nothing but shorts and stand beside the toilet bowl with mosquitoes biting him until 11:00 p.m. or midnight. His back was severely bloodied by the sharp coverings of the barley stalks that he had to carry. Even his food was filled with trails of blood.

The third stage of persecution commenced in early 2004 and continues today. The main focus is on the use of inhumane means of persecution. Misleading practitioners is used as a supplemental form of persecution. Soon, however, many practitioners who initially were unsure of Falun Dafa cultivation finally understood. Therefore, "Using the Fa to Destroy the Fa" became useless and failed to "transform" them.

When a practitioner enters a forced labour camp, personnel who received a higher education are assigned to mislead them. This might include forcing them to watch movies with a lot of Falun Dafa slandering material. The goal is always to "transform" the practitioner in a short time. If practitioners are not "transformed," the forced labour personnel resort to physical abuse, like using a shoe to slap him/her, brutal beatings, the use of wooden planks to smash practitioners’ hands and fingers on a stool, forcing him/her to stand against the wall while others repeatedly kick his/her head, chest/breasts, legs and private parts. If the practitioner still refuses to be "transformed," then toilet use is restricted. He/she would not be allowed to go to the toilet for long periods of time. Practitioners would be forced to urinate in their clothing and suffer in agony. If a practitioner still refused to "transform," he would get no water, or his daily food portion would be reduced or taken away for days. The practitioner was only given a few hours of sleep for days. In more severe cases, the practitioner could be totally deprived of sleep for many consecutive days. All of the above persecution begins from the first day a Falun Dafa practitioner steps into the forced labour camp.

Practitioners of all ages are treated cruelly. A sixty-year-old Falun Dafa practitioner was persistent in his beliefs. This resulted in him being tortured until he nearly suffered a mental collapse. The tortures affected his balance, making him weave back and forth when he walked. Those practitioners new to the forced labour camp experienced the torture known as "Three Broad-axes," where they were fiercely pounded with a wood board several times. If they refuse to be "transformed," practitioners are sent directly to the Fourth Brigade. Fanqiang Forced Labour Camp’s Fourth Brigade was formed in October 2002. It was mainly used to "transform" practitioners. Steadfast Falun Dafa practitioners were tortured for long periods of time. Those who were extremely persistent in their beliefs were isolated from the rest, monitored by four to five personnel and persecuted in secret.

In the forced labour camp, it was difficult to tell day from night because most practitioners got very little sleep. If situations required it, all the windows and doors would be covered. Several of the persecution methods are listed below:

1. Prolonged squatting: Falun Dafa practitioners were deprived of sleep. The guards were afraid that practitioners would fall sleep while standing, so they forced them to squat like soldiers with their backs straight. They were not allowed to change the position of their feet. During the winter, pans of water were placed on either side and below the buttocks of the squatting practitioners. If the practitioners were sleepy, the guards might trickle drops of icy water down their throats. Sometimes, they even removed the practitioners’ cotton clothing and poured icy water on their bodies. If the practitioners’ feet were too sore to squat and they touched the water in the pans, the persecutors would open the windows. The winter winds would blow on the practitioners, chilling them to the bone.

2. "Flying the airplane:" Several labour camp personnel would make the practitioners lie face down on the floor or a table and tie their hands behind their backs. Then they would straighten their legs and trample the practitioners or slam them against the wall. The practitioners felt nauseated or dizzy and their heads would bleed. Every time a practitioner’s head was banged against the wall it was counted as "flying the airplane" once. There was a Falun Dafa practitioner who was tortured this way during the midnight hours. The next day, his head was full of bruises and blood flowed from the wounds on his head.

3. Smoked with mosquito repellent: The labour camp personnel would light smoke repellents in a toilet bowl and close the lid. When it was completely filled with smoke, the practitioner’s head would be pushed into the bowl by two guards. The other people would pin the practitioners’ legs. They even used the mosquito repellent coils and/or cigarette tips to scald the soles of the practitioner’s feet.

4. Squatting in a metal box: Practitioners severely deprived of sleep would constantly doze off with their minds in a state of confusion. The perpetrators would make banging or screeching sounds next to their ears or push them into a metal box. They would bang and shake the metal box to produce loud noises to irritate practitioners. The aim of such persecution was to destroy the practitioners mentally, making it easier to "transform" them.

5. Electric Batons: A person’s skin and flesh is torn apart by electric shocks from electric batons. There was a Falun Dafa practitioner persecuted for so long that he could no longer stand. The perpetrators then used two electric batons on him simultaneously, using his inability to stand as an excuse.

6. Icy shower: In the heart of winter, the perpetrators would rip off practitioners’ clothing and make them run around indoors. This was a common occurrence. They might even drag practitioners to a water basin and shower them with icy cold water before forcing them to stand in front of an open window for half an hour. The cold of the winter wind caused practitioners to shiver and tremble uncontrollably and some people even turned purple. Such persecution was commonly used at least once a day. A Falun Dafa practitioner with the surname of Liu was reduced to skin and bones from the abuse suffered at the labour camp. His initial weight was more than 130 lbs, but he weighed only 80 lbs as a result of torture and forced labour. Yet he was stripped naked and dragged to the clothes drying area. The perpetrators cracked open the layer of ice covering the water in a few buckets that were prepared the day before and threw it onto the practitioner’s bare body. Then, two people dragged him out to the open window to expose him to the freezing northern wind. They firmly pressed his hands against the icy metal rim of the window. At this moment, even the perpetrators wearing thick jackets could no longer stand the cold. They backed away from the window, and the practitioner used this opportunity to run away from the window. However, he was seized, hit with mops and brutally kicked. Then, they pushed him down, bloodying his head on the frozen cement floor. The officials in charge of "transforming" practitioners watched the cruel scene from the door!

7. Forced feeding by infusion: Some practitioners went on hunger strikes to protest the persecution. Initially, the labour camp personnel ignored them, but when practitioners’ health began to fail, these perpetrators started to "save" them by forcefully inserting plastic feeding tubes through their noses. Practitioners could not use the toilet during the fluid infusions and many were forced to wet the bed at night. There was a Falun Dafa practitioner persecuted in this manner for a long period of time. Every time he was force-fed, mucus and fresh blood would ooze from the plastic tube as it was removed.. The most horrifying thing about this torture was the fact that the labour camp personnel would insert fecal material into the tube before inserting food.

8. Standing facing the wall, sitting on stones or squatting on bricks: The perpetrators made practitioners stand facing the wall, with their noses touching the wall and arms hanging down. Practitioners were compelled to stand for long hours, and when they were tired and moved a little, they would be beaten up. When practitioners were tired and began to fidget, the perpetrators might also ask them if they wished to sit down. If practitioners said yes, then someone would made practitioners sit down on Teacher Li’s photo placed on a chair. If practitioners refused to sit, they would be forced to by brute force, and if they still refused despite this, they would made practitioners sit on the floor. However, they would first place many stones with sharp edges or broken glass shards before stripping off the trousers of the practitioners and forcing practitioners to sit on the floor. Then they would drag practitioners on the floor, until their buttocks and thighs were covered with blood.

Practitioners might also be made to squat on bricks. With their shoes and socks removed, practitioners were made to squat for a very long period of time on two bricks. If the practitioners were tired and tried to straighten their backs or rest their feet, they would receive severe beatings. Otherwise, instead of receiving beatings, the torturers might lift practitioners up and placed them back into the squatting position. Such persecution for a prolonged period of time caused practitioners to develop swollen legs, which were extremely painful. In severe cases, practitioners' ankle bones might be injured, rendering them immobile.

9. Being tied up on a wooden board: Practitioners were immobilised on a wooden board, with both of their limbs stretched out and tied up for long periods of time, so that they were forced to urinate and defecate on themselves. A cruel person with the surname of Xie, made Falun Dafa practitioners insult Master Li Hongzhi and Falun Dafa. They would place a picture of Teacher Li on chairs. They would not let practitioners sit, or would coerce them to sit on Teacher Li’s photo. The perpetrators took used toilet paper and placed it on Teacher Li’s photo. Sometimes they would tie the practitioners’ hands together and forcefully insert Teacher Li’s photo into the practitioners’ underwear. Such despicable methods were a manifestation of pure evil.

10. Changing environments: Sometimes practitioners persistent in their belief were sent to other forced labour camps or brainwashing centres to be further persecuted. Practitioners from other areas were taken in for "transformation." The innocent Falun Dafa practitioners who were persecuted thought that what was happening was unknown to the police. The practitioners went to report these atrocities to the police, only to find that the police were in collusion with the persecutors; yet they acted as if nothing happened. Falun Dafa practitioners were being closely monitored. Their rooms had surveillance cameras that monitored them twenty-four hours a day. The labour camp police sat in the control room, watching that everything was being carried out as they had ordered.

Fangqiang Forced Labour Camp in Jiangsu Province has committed many crimes in the persecution against Falun Dafa practitioners. They have shed too many practitioners’ blood over the years. The "transformation" is in fact a trail of the Falun Dafa practitioners’ blood and tears. Since July 20th, 1999, Jiang Zemin’s regime has been executing their policy of "Education, Salvation and Transformation," and behind it is a series of human tragedies happening even at this very moment in all the forced labour camps, prisons and brainwashing centres throughout China.

Note

1. "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.

2. "Reform or Transform" Implementation of brainwashing and torture in order to force a practitioner to renounce Falun Gong. (Variations: "reform", "transform", "reformed", "reforming", "transformed", "transforming", and "transformation")

3. "Collaborators": Former practitioners who have turned against Falun Gong under brainwashing and torture. They are then made to assist in brainwashing and torturing practitioners.

4. Fa: Law and principles; the teachings of Falun Dafa.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2006/6/18/130720.html