Mr. Zhang Qiwang Is Detained in Handan Forced Labour Camp in Hebei Province

At around 8 p.m. on October 9th, 2007, approximately 10 officers from Qing County Police Station and Chongxian Police Station in Hebei Province broke into the home of Mr. Zhang Qiwang, a Falun Dafa practitioner. While three policemen were watching Mr. Zhang's wife, Ms. Bai Shuqin, outside the house, the rest went inside to search and videotape their home over Mr. Zhang's objections. The police beat him and handcuffed him. They broke his VCR in all the violence. Then they damaged the door to one room and confiscated 24,800 yuan¹ and his child's computer. Ms. Bai was taken to Mumendian Police Station because she felt nauseous on the way, and Mr. Zhang was taken to Qing County Police Station. In Mumendian Police Station, the police tried to force Bai Shuqin to agree to where they claimed the "incriminating" items from her home had come from. Then they ordered her to sign the interrogation record, which she refused to do. So Wang Zhenfeng, the director of the State Security Group of Qing County Police Station, hit her in the face. Other officers beat her and swore at her, too. The Head of Mumendian Township smacked her left cheek, making her nose bleed, but they didn't allow her to wipe off the blood. In the end, they had to send Bai Shuqin home because she became very sick.

Three days later, Ms. Bai and her family members went to Qing County Police Station to ask that their belongings be returned and for the release of Zhang Qiliang. The family told Sun Jiangqi, the deputy-director of the police station, "Look at what you police have done to Bai Shuqin!" Su Jiaqi replied, "I wasn't aware of this situation. I don't care. What I say counts if you want to get your stuff back. As for the money, you have to prove that the money is yours. As for the person, you have to go to the detention centre." The family went to the detention centre three or four times, but the director of the centre wouldn't allow them to see Mr. Zhang. In the end, the family had to return to Sun Jiaqi, but he swore at them and threatened them saying, "If you don't obey us, we can beat you, too." On October 26th, in desperation, the family went to the detention centre once more. The staff on duty told them that Zhang Qiwang had been taken away by officers from the Political Security Department of Qing County Police Station. The family went back to Sun Jiaqi and asked him where Zhang Qiwang had been taken. Sun Jiaqi said that he didn't know. The family went to Wang Zhenfeng and asked him, but he said, "I don't know. It was detention centre officials that sent Zhang Qiwang away." Bai Shuqin confronted him, "The detention centre said you and your staff from the Political Security Department took my husband away." Finally, Wang Zhenfeng couldn't lie any more and told the family, "He was sent to Handan City, but I don't really know the exact place." That very night, the family went to Sun Jiaqi's home to ask him about Zhang Qiwang's whereabouts. Sun verbally abused and threatened them. In the end, he told them that Zhang Qiwang had been sent to Handan Forced Labour Camp.

Later the family learned that Qing County Police Station officials had secretly sent Zhang Qiwang to Handan Forced Labour Camp--without informing the family--on October 26th. Mr. Zhang was handcuffed, put in shackles, and verbally abused by the police. Beaten by inmates in Qing County Detention Centre, Mr. Zhang Qiwang was already injured physically and mentally.

He was locked in a tiny, separate cell in Handan Forced Labour Camp; deprived of sleep; and not allowed to eat a full meal. In addition to brainwashing him with distorted ideas, labour camp personnel tried to "transform²" him with threats related to extending his imprisonment. They offered to shorten his term if he gave up his belief. On October 29th, the head of Handan Forced Labour Camp called the family and said, "You can visit him if you have a reason to. The 10th of every month is family visiting day." However, when Zhang Qiwang's family went to the labour camp on November 10th, they were turned away with excuses and told that they could only visit him three months later. Zhang Qiwang was only allowed to write a letter to Bai Shuqin, although the guards had to watch him do it. Afterwards, Bai Shuqin called the director of the labour camp and said, "Is it that you have tortured Zhang Qiwang so badly that you can't let people see him? I heard that Xu Kai from Changzhou City was beaten and his face was disfigured." The director denied it. The family went back to the labour camp on December 2nd, but were turned away again.

When Zhang Qiwang was arrested, the crops were still in the field waiting to be harvested. The family fell into deep financial trouble upon his arrest. His son couldn't continue his schooling due to lack of money for school fees, and his mother, who was diagnosed with cancer, couldn't get treatment due to lack of money. Besides taking care of her son and sick mother-in-law, Bai Shuqin had to harvest the crops herself. In spite of all of these difficulties, the family borrowed money to travel 2,000 kilometres to Handan Forced Labour Camp to see Zhang Qiwang, but were rejected by the wardens every time. His ill mother cries every day, missing her son. In order to provide treatment for his mother and schooling for their child, Bai Shuqin and her family went to Qing County Police Station many times to try to get their belongings back, but Sun Jiaqi said, "You want the money back? You must prove that the money is yours. And our video camera broke, so you have to pay for it, which must be deducted (from your money)!" The family tried to argue, but Sun Jiaqi swore at them.

After he began practising Falun Dafa, Mr. Zhang Qiwang benefited greatly. His bad temper went away; his skin disease, from which he had suffered for many years, disappeared without any treatment; and he became a good person who likes to help others. Since Jiang's regime started the persecution of Falun Gong in July 2007, millions of practitioners have been cruelly persecuted. The persecution of Mr. Zhang Qiliang has affected him and his family profoundly.

Note

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

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")

Chinese version available at http://minghui.org/mh/articles/2008/1/1/169413.html