Ms. Zhu Yifang: The Relentless Torture I Have Suffered for Refusing to Renounce My Belief

My name is Zhu Yifang. I previously worked at the Guangyuan City Liaison Office in Chengdu City. On April 25th, 2006, Guangyuan City Police Department officers arrested me and sentenced me to seven years in prison. Over two years ago, on November 11th, 2006, I was sent to the Sichuan Women's Prison.

I was locked in a cell for a long time because I did not want to give up my belief. My cell door remained closed until the earthquake on May 12th, 2008. Three inmates took turns assisting the guards in monitoring me. They forbade me to leave the cell and prevented people from talking to me. One time, a criminal prisoner felt sorry for me because I could not buy anything. She offered me a small amount of vinegar, but she was scolded afterwards for doing it. Another time a person gave me a few tea leaves, but she was reprimanded in front of others. One day an older lady newly arrived. She didn't know my situation and gave me two sweets. For this, guard Jiang verbally abused her.

I suffered many personal insults while incarcerated. For example, because I refused to wear the prison uniform, guards ordered criminals to remove my clothes, leaving me only in underpants and a bra. No one dared to give me clothes. The guards even took away the bed sheet I used to wrap around myself.

Being detained, mistreated and brainwashed by three collaborators¹ for such a long time subjected me to huge mental pressures. It has been a long time since I was given any regular food. My diet has been without vegetables and fruit. Lacking sunshine, I developed all-over oedema. I requested many times to leave the cell to get hot water, but permission was never granted. Soon, my life was in danger and I was sent to the police hospital. My family was notified of my medical emergency, and being forced to pay the medical expenses created a lot of pressure for my family members.

While hospitalized, I didn't cooperate with the hospital personnel. I was trying to do the Falun Gong exercises, but they tied me onto a bed for an injection. The doctor was unable to diagnose any problem, and my body kept swelling. One day I had an opportunity to share with two other practitioners. Soon the police learned of this and took me back to the prison, even though I was still swollen.

Four "collaborators" were subjecting me to daily "study" (brainwashing) and "reform²." They routinely chose words out of context from the Falun Gong teachings to deceive practitioners.

In my cell, two prisoners and three collaborators continually tried to coerce me into renouncing Falun Gong. The main responsible person in charge of persecution was Zhao Hongmei. Every day she used soft and hard methods on me, trying to manipulate my feelings with her phony kindness. Whenever I didn't cooperate with her, she ordered me to go down three floors to be exposed to harsher mistreatment. The swelling made it difficult for me to go down stairs. The guards mistreated me by using my weakness, and ordered me to walk down stairs. If I didn't comply, they forced me to undergo brainwashing. They even used my current ill health to influence my family members to pressure me.

Feeling physically unwell, the repetitious brainwashing attacks from the collaborators created huge physical and mental pressures on me.

I was not allowed to meet with my family members during the past two years because I didn't give up my belief. Pen and paper were taken away. I wasn't allowed to write to my family, and neither could I call them. My son brought me clothes, but he was not permitted to meet with me.

Recently the guards have wanted my son to visit me. They planned to arrange a visit by my family to influence me, and to see what I would do.

My husband died a long time ago. During the past ten years I have been detained and arrested many times. My son drifted on the streets many times. In 2005, I left home. The police took my son and interrogated him for an entire night. When my son was in middle school and high school the police often came to our home to harass them. The tutor/teacher was frightened away. My son couldn't study normally, and couldn't live normally. He decided to leave home and study at his aunt's place.

My elderly mother-in-law, who lived far away from us, heard that I was sentenced to seven years in prison. She couldn't accept the shocking news and died when I was on the way to the prison. When my father-in-law heard that I had been arrested many times, his health deteriorated, and he also died. My son is now the only one left. He was depending on his uncle and aunt and relying on a temporary job to make a living. My son has suffered so much tragedy that has created huge mental and financial burdens for him.

Zhao Hongmei recently contacted him and tried use him to manipulate me into giving up my belief, claiming that I didn't take care of my son, that I did not want to get out early, and I was heartless. She tried to coerce me by telling me how much I owed to my family members. She tried to use my son to persuade me and she used my health to threaten me.

Police officer primarily responsible: Zhao Hongmei

Note

1. "Collaborators": [former practitioners who have turned against Falun Gong under brainwashing and torture. They are then made to assist in brainwashing and torturing practitioners.]

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.ca/mh/articles/2009/2/11/195249.html