As Olympics Draw Closer, Falun Gong Practitioners Arrested in Taiyuan City

From May to June, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has disseminated propaganda throughout China that slanders Falun Gong and intensifies the persecution of practitioners. The CCP has also planned the arrest of Falun Gong practitioners in different government organizations. Recently the Taiyuan Police Department of Shanxi Province has arrested about twenty Falun Gong practitioners.

Police officers from the Yingze Branch of the Taiyuan Police Department, Qiaodong Police Station, and City Municipal Police Station arrested Ms. Yueqin Zhang, who is in her fifties, from Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province at 11:00 p.m. on May 5th, 2008. They also ransacked her house.

On May 14th, police from the "Old Army Camp" police station arrested practitioner Ms. Suwei Dong, who is in her fifties.

Officers from the Qianfeng Police Station arrested about ten Falun Gong practitioners from Yi Village, in the Wenbailin District of Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province on May 6th, 2008. The police confiscated computers, information materials, and other personal property. Among them, Ms. Yang Li and Ms. Sufen Wei, both in their forties, from Taiyuan Technology University, and Mr. Jinsheng Zhang, 59, were arrested by officers from the City Municipal Police Station of the Yingze Branch of the Taiyuan Police Department.

On June 2nd, 2008, officers arrested Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Hua Zhou as he was distributing information about Falun Gong in Hao Village. At midnight, the police entered Mr. Hua's home and arrested his son. Both men were taken to the Yingze Detention Centre where they were held for five days and subjected to interrogation. Under such pressure, the son, Zhen Zhou, who is about 25 years old, disclosed the names of Falun Gong practitioners Liang Linsheng, Ren Yuhong, and Ren Xiaoqing. The police officers then targeted those Falun Gong practitioners.

The house of Mr. Linsheng Liang, 56, was searched from midnight until 2:00 a.m. The scene was something right out of the Cultural Revolution as the officers ransacked the house and confiscated a computer, three printers and printing paper, along with other property. The police arrested Mr. Liang's wife Meiyue at that time.

Ms. Yuhong Ren, 50, an accountant from Taiyuan City, was arrested by police officers on the afternoon of June 8th when she was asked to come in for questioning. At 9:00 p.m. on the following day officers illegally searched her house.

The police arrested Mr. Xiaoqing Ren, 55, at 2:00 a.m. on June 9th.

Mr. Ren had been arrested on March 5th, 2001, and sent to a brainwashing session at the Taiyuan City Forced Labour Camp. Because he would not agree to relinquish his beliefs, he was taken to Shanxi Province Xindian Men's Forced Labour Camp and subjected to brutal torture for three years. He was finally released in September 2004.

Mr. Liang and his wife, Ms. Ren, as well as Mr. Ren (unrelated) are currently imprisoned in the Hao Village local police station in the Yingze Branch of Taiyuan City Police Department.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.org/mh/articles/2008/6/13/180179.html