The Severe Persecution of Ms. Yang Hualian from Guanghan City, Sichuan Province

Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Yang Hualian, 56, is an engineer at the Agricultural Machinery Bureau in Guanghan City, Sichuan Province. She has been arrested seven times since July 1999 for persisting in her belief in Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. Ms. Yang was sent to a brainwashing centre twice, sent to forced labour twice, and has been sentenced to prison once.

During her detentions, Ms. Yang endured savage tortures, such as electric shocks and beatings. The beatings and other abuses led to a lumbar vertebra fracture, severe back injury, high blood pressure, heart attack, and other problems. She became almost blind and unable to take care of herself. Her employers fired her in September 2008, causing her to lose her only source of income.

1. Shifang Police arrested Yang Hualian and searched her home several times

Between July 1999 and April 2001, officer Jiang Tianxing from the Shifang City Police Department, and Zheng Youming, Zhang Xiaolin and Xiao Qikui from the Chengbei Police Station searched Yang Hualian's home five times. These police officers often broke into the residents' homes in the middle of the night without search permits. They looked for Falun Gong materials such as books, video, audio tapes, and yellow clothes. They confiscated personal belongings, such as mobile phones, ID cards, registration cards and other items. The persecutors never provided a list of items they took.

Yang Hualian was arrested on July 29th, 1999 on her return from a business trip. Police officer Xiao Qikui handled the arrest. She was interrogated at the Chengbei Police Station for three hours.

On December 31st, 2000 agents Wang Zhiwei, Li Jun, Jiang Tianxing and Zhou Chengshi from the Shifang Police Department arrested Yang Hualian again. She was detained for 18 days and fined 5,000 yuan¹.

In the middle of the night on April 27th, 2001, Shifang City police arrested Ms. Yang. Officer Jiang Tianxing tried to force a confession with torture, and slamming her face and head against the wall. Yang Hualian was eventually subjected to one year of forced labour. While in the Sichuan Women's Forced Labour Camp, guard Zhang Xiaofang and the inmates beat her ruthlessly. She was covered with cuts and bruises. One of her lumbar vertebrae sustained a rupture. She had to stay in bed. Adding to her trauma, her forced labour term was prolonged. Ms. Yang was released on March 6th, 2003.

Yang Hualian was again arrested, this time on July 7th, 2004, and sent to the so-called Deyang City Advocating Science Education School, which is actually a brainwashing centre. The persecutors initially used the "soft tactics" such as helping her wash her hair, her feet, or washing her clothes. Once they realized that Ms. Yang still persisted in her belief, they showed their ferocity and physically and mentally tormented her. They punched and kicked her, pulled out tufts of her hair, tore one of her earlobes and slammed her head against a wall. She was also deprived of sleep. The abusers subjected Ms. Yang to 48 days of tortures.

Yang Hualian was once again arrested on November 6th, 2004, by Shifang City police. Police officer Ye Xiangwei shocked her with electric rods while trying to extort a confession from her, and hit her head against a wall.

On December 8th, 2004, police officer Liu Hongjian tried to have Yang Hualian admitted into the Sichuan Women's Forced Labour Camp for three years of forced labour. The labour camp officials refused to accept her. The police negotiated with the labour camp staff for over two hours and failed, but said later on if they bribed the staff with two packages of cigarettes they would succeed.

Six months later, on the morning of July 8th, 2005 while Yang Hualian was at work, officers Li Dan, Zhen Youming, and Zhang Xiaolin from the Chengbei Police Station arrested her once again. She was sent to the brainwashing centre (the "Deyang City Advocating Science Education School") again, where she suffered from torture. Ms. Yang was unable to straighten her back and unable to walk as a result of the abuse she experienced. Her blood pressure reached 230. She suffered for 78 days at the brainwashing centre. On September 22nd, 2005 Ms. Yang was sent to a detention centre and then officially arrested.

The following year, on April 29th, 2006, agents Yang Ping and Zhou Zhihon from the Domestic Security Division at the Guanghan City Police Department fabricated evidence against Yang Hualian. They collaborated with Liu Shengwei from the Guanghan Procuratorate, and Shi Xiaoli, Zen Lingsheng and Chen Min from the Guanghan City Court, to sentence Yang Hualian to three years in prison. Deyang Intermediate Court officials upheld the sentence on June 28th, 2006.

2. Suffering at the Deyang City Brainwashing Centre

This centre, as stated above, is also known as the "Deyang City Law Base" employing nearly 30 people. Less than ten Falun Gong practitioners were detained there. The ten confinement rooms were monitored with electronic surveillance equipment. Once a practitioner is detained there, all activities are confined inside, including eating, sleeping or toileting. Two persons are assigned to monitor a practitioner 24 hours a day. These so-called "instructors" are from different regime branches and are extremely cruel. None of them dare to publish their names or their work unit. None of them wear a police uniform. These people's "teaching aids" are handcuffs and materials that slander and frame Falun Gong.

Yang Hualian was sent to the brainwashing centre twice: once on July 7th, 2004, and the other time in July 2005. She had to undergo a body search and was locked up in a confinement room where she had to watch video programs that slander Falun Gong. They would turn the audio to the loudest level. More than ten people took turns to barrage her with anti-Falun Gong propaganda. They tried to force her to write statements giving up her belief. They kicked and punched her. She was handcuffed. Guards Wang Leijian and Li Zhanghua slapped her face. Wang Weidong grabbed her hair and hit her head against a wall. They put unknown drugs into her drinking water or soup. On the hottest summer days, the door and windows in the room were tightly closed without air circulation.

3. Suffering in the Sichuan Women's Forced Labour Camp

Yang Hualian was detained in the Sichuan Women's Forced Labour Camp between April 27th, 2001 and March 6th, 2003.

On November 28th, 2001, because Ms. Yang stood up for an older practitioner whom guard Li Jiarong had beaten, Li Jiarong pushed her into a guard office and closed the door. He attempted to shock Yang with an electric rod on her face, hands and mouth. However, the shocks didn't work on Ms. Yang but did on Li Jiarong whose hands became red. Li was in a rage. He set down the electric rod and beat Ms. Yang viciously. The beating led to the fracture of one of her lumbar vertebrae and injury to most of the tissue in her back. Li still scolded Yang Hualian and claimed she was faking her pain. Several hours later, another guard on duty realized the injuries were severe and sent Ms. Yang to the labour camp hospital.

On October 16th, 2002 Yang Hualian reported beatings of practitioners to the authorities. Five guards and inmates including Zhang Xiaofang retaliated and tied her up and beat her. She was covered with bruises and wounds, but they lied and said she had attacked the guards, resulting in an extension of her term by three months more. They also took 700 yuan in cash from her.

4. Suffering at the Sichuan Women's Prison

On June 28th, 2008 Yang Hualian was sentenced to three years in prison and arrived at the Sichuan Women's Prison on July 28th, 2008.

No. 4 Division head Luo and guard Deng Qianwen tried to stop Ms. Yang from appealing to higher officials. They searched and took the required documentation for petitioning/appealing, such as "Notification," "Statement of Appeal," "Court Decision," and "Ruling Statement." They also removed writing paper and a blank envelope. Three people were assigned to monitor Yang Hualian day and night.

On January 30th, 2007, Deng Qianwen viciously said to Ms. Yang, "You had ten days to appeal your ruling. Now you don't have a chance to appeal anymore." Ms. Yang replied, "I have tried to appeal. But you all managed to stop me. It is you who violate the law." Just one day later, on February 1st, 2007, Yang Hualian was sent to the "Strictly Controlled" division, where Zhu Xi and other guards immediately beat her badly with fists and kicked her.

In the middle of September 2007, because Ms. Yang refused to wear a prisoner's ID badge, guard Min Lu handcuffed. Her blood pressure reach 210/130, triggering a heart attack. As soon as Ms. Yang returned from the hospital, they immediately handcuffed her again, day and night.

Guard Min Lo forbade Yang Hualian's family members from visiting her, and did not let her call home. They didn't inform her family beforehand of the no-visit policy. They had arrived from far away to see their loved one.

When the Sichuan earthquake happened on May 12th, 2008, the prison administration refused Ms. Yang permission to call her home towns, Shifang and Jinzhu, the epicentres of the quake, where her parents, her parents-in-law and brothers and sisters lived. She was worried about her family and tried to call several times but failed. The prison increased their surveillance of Ms. Yang. Except for working like a slave at the workshop, she had no other activities. Her feet were swollen to the extent that they could not fit into her shoes.

Yang Hualian had written many letters to her family during the three years in prison, but her family received only one letter from her. The guards had censored most of the contents with ink-marks, making the writing unrecognizable.

The gross abuse and mistreatment severely damaged Yang Hualian's health. She suffered back pain, weak legs, high blood pressure, symptoms of heart disease and was almost blind.

5. Getting Fired

In July 2008, Lei Jianzhong and Cen Zhen from the Guanghan City Discipline Inspection Commission wrote a report, demanding Yang Hualian's work unit to fire her. They even ordered Ms. Yang to sign the report. After she refused, they viciously said, "It doesn't matter whether you sign or not. You will be fired."

In September 2008 Liu Mingxian, who used to be head of the Guanhan Agriculture Machinery Bureau, fired Ms. Yang. He later got a job in the Human Relations Bureau. While head of the Guanhan Agriculture Machinery Bureau, he ordered that Ms. Yang's annual bonuses since 2000 not be paid, as well as her salary since 2001, and he withheld all other benefits as well. During the 2004 Chinese New Year, after Liu Mingxian received a few calls from people asking him to treat Yang Hualian kindly, he declared a "no work" order for Ms. Yang and collaborated with police to send her to the brainwashing centre on July 7th, 2004.

Yang Hualian was released from prison on September 20th, 2008 after serving her term. She returned to her hometown, so that her relatives could take care of her. Unfortunately, just one day after she returned home, Huang Ruosong from the Guanghan City 610 Office² called her home town and stated that Yang Hualian was an important criminal. That statement made her elderly parents extremely worried and upset day and night.

People involved in the persecution:
Shifang Police Department: Wang Zhiwei, Tang Lizhong, Jiang Tianxing, Li Qun, Xie Yuedong, Yang Bin, Zhou Chengshi
Guanghan City Procuratorate: Liu Shengwei
Guanghan City Court: Shi Xiaoli, Ceng Lingsheng, Chen Min
Chengbei Police Station: Zheng Youming, Xiao Qikui, Zhang Xiaolin, Li Dan
Guanghan City Detention Centre: Jia Xiaohong
Guanghan City Human Relationship Bureau: Liu Mingxian
Deyang City Brainwashing Centre: Huang Ruosong, Zhou Zhihong, Wang Leijian, Wang Weidong, Li Zhanghua, Xu Junhua, Lai Rumu, Lu Yuxiang, Liu Xiaohong, Hu Xiaolin, Wu XX
Deyang City Immediate Court: Ou Keneng, Wang Tao, Li Hong
Sichuan Women's Forced Labour Camp: Li Jiarong, Zhang Xiaofang, Mao Yucun
Sichuan Women's Prison: Xu Zhifang, Zhu Xi, Min Lu, Chen Xuemei, Chen Qiong, Deng Qianwen, Tan Feiyan, Nie Dongmei, Chen Li, Cai Qinghua, Wang XX

Note

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

2. "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/2009/4/23/199500.html