My Experience at the Shandong Province First Women's Forced Labour Camp

I was sentenced to one and a half years of forced labour in 2008, and imprisoned at the Shandong Province First Women's Forced Labour Camp.

When I was taken to the labour camp, the guards locked me in a single cell, and had a "reformed¹" inmate monitor me. They forced me to sit on a short plastic stool and did not allow me to move, close my eyes, or use the toilet. I ate, drank, excreted, and slept in the same room. They did not allow me to leave the room because I refused to be "reformed", nor would I write the "Three Statements²". Friction burns occurred on my buttocks after sitting on the stool for a long time. My hands would feel wet after touching them. The "reformed" inmate kept slandering Falun Gong. I did not listen to her. Then the guards sent in another one to slander Falun Gong in front of me. I did not listen to this person, either. Seeing that this was having no effect, the guards changed their tactics to using regular inmates to monitor me, forcing me to march and recite the "Ten Principles" of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The guards also took turns talking to me. They woke me up very early in the morning, and kept me awake until very late at night. I slept on the floor and did not get adequate rest.

In the winter of 2008, the labour camp was overcrowded. The younger ones had to sleep on the floor. To use the toilet at night, inmates had to step between the heads of others. The CCP imprisoned many people in the labour camp in order to make money through free labour. The labour camp had many orders to fulfil. Some were for toys, some were for mobile phone cases. Inmates had to work more than ten hours a day, seven days a week. Some inmates' wrists and fingers were injured by the repetitive labour. Some had friction burns on their hands, some had swollen legs. Inmates had to ask for permission before using the toilet. Permission to use the toilet was not granted if the permission request was not recited correctly. A practitioner was not allowed to use the toilet because she did not recite the statement.

We got up around 5:00 a.m. in the winter, went to the workshop to work at 7:30 a.m., and worked straight through lunch without a break until 8:30 p.m. Sometimes, we had to work until 11:00 p.m. When we worked overtime in our cells to glue paper bags, the glue smelled horrible and made us sick.

We were worked past our physical limits, but were only paid 10-30 yuan, according to our productivity. We were given the cheapest food available.

One day in July 2008, the labour camp had visitors. Guard Sun Liqun told us, "If a visitor talks to you, do not answer, do not lower your mouth masks, pretend to be shy." Guards had us hide our badges from our chests, and our name cards from our beds in the cells. Guard Li Yu hid the productivity records and most of the products in the workshop, and left only one or two products in front of each of us. The badges and the bed cards had our names, forced labour terms and other information. The productivity records noted our intensive labour.

In the morning of the day of the inspection, the workshop was very quiet. Guards Sun Juan and Li Yu said, "There is no quota today. It is OK to do less." The second day, the labour camp went back to its old ways.

The most severe aspect of the labour camp was how it mentally devastated practitioners. Guards forced us to watch false news which slandered Falun Gong, then forced us to write our "understanding." They forced us to write monthly, half year, and yearly summaries, praising the "greatness, glory, and rightness" of the CCP, and express appreciation for the CCP. The practitioners did not have any personal freedom. We were monitored even when using the toilet, and were not allowed to do Falun Gong exercises or mention Falun Gong.

Note

1. "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")

2. "Three Statements": Practitioners are coerced under brainwashing and torture to write "Repentance Statement," "Guarantee Statement" or 'Dissociation Statement" as proof that they have given up their belief. In the statement, the practitioner is forced to admit remorse for practising Falun Gong, promise to give up Falun Gong, and never again associate with other practitioners or go to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong.

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2009/9/8/207953.html