Practitioner Zhang Yunping's Family Members Arrested When They Tried to Visit Him at Jidong Prison

Hao Baoxin, head of the Fourth Division at Jidong Prison, ordered dozens of officers, including prison guards, armed police and local police to arrest family members of Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Zhang Yunping from Tangshan City when they tried to visit him at Jidong Prison.

During the afternoon of November 20th, 2009, several relatives of Mr. Zhang Yuping - two men and three women - went to the Fourth Division to visit him. He was hospitalised at the Fourth Division Central Hospital for two months. They found the reception office closed and a notice posted on the door saying that family visits had been suspended because of H1N1 epidemic prevention.

Deeply worried about Mr. Zhang's health, the family looked for a supervisor, hoping they would be allowed to see Mr. Zhang. They came across Hao Baoxin who received them in the office, appearing to be very warm. He asked a few questions about their relationships with Mr. Zhang and agreed to let them see him. The family was thankful.

Hao Baoxin then made some phone calls, but always walked outside to talk. In the interim, he chatted with the family members, and referred to them as friends in front of a guard who arrived, and told the guard he would personally take the family to see Mr. Zhang. He also suggested having a few female guards escort the women family members, because all the inmates were men.

After a long time had passed, Hao Baoxin seemed to become anxious. He told the family that the personnel he had called in were not ready yet. By this time, guards were coming in and out of the office, but they all looked suspicious. While the two male family members went to use the toilet, Hao Baoxin urged the other family members to ask them back and tell them not to move around. Then he led several guards into the toilet and arrested the two male family members.

By this time dozens of armed police, prison guards and local police officers had gathered on the road outside the prison. They handcuffed the two male family members' hands behind their backs and kept the women family members from leaving the room. The women questioned them, "Why are you arresting our family members?" The answer was that they had committed a wrongdoing. The women said, "All this time they have been waiting here with us. Hao Baoxin had promised to take us inside to see Zhang Yuping. They could not have done anything. You're committing a crime by arresting the innocent!" Hao Baoxin rushed toward them and shouted hysterically at Mr. Zhang's wife, "You have committed a crime! You practise Falun Gong!" Zhang Yuping's wife shouted at him, "What is wrong with practising Falun Gong? What crime did I commit by practising Falun Gong?" Hao became speechless.

Hao Baoxin's shameless plot has greatly hurt Mr. Zhang's family. While the family members were describing the entire story to the crowd, Hao Baoxin fled and never reappeared.

The family went to the Jidong Prison Affairs Office, to file a complaint against Hao Baoxin.

Background

Mr. Zhang Yunping, 56 years old, is a retired employee of the Tangshan Iron and Steel Company, Limited.

In late March 2003, the authorities arrested Mr. Zhang because he practised Falun Gong, and detained him at the Tangshan Iron and Steel Company security office. They sent him to the Tangshan City Second Detention Centre several days later and eventually transferred him to the Tangshan City First Detention Centre. In the following months the authorities sentenced him to eight years in prison. Mr. Zhang has been imprisoned at the Jidong Prison's Fifth Division since April 2004. Several years of persecution have ruined his health. He has developed diabetes and tuberculosis in addition to high blood pressure and heart disease. A cut on his finger as a result of manual labour led to infection and eventually became osteomyelitis (infection of the bone). He has been hospitalised at the Fourth Division's Central Hospital for two months and is now emaciated.

Although procedures to release Mr. Zhang on medical parole were begun on October 16th, 2009, no progress has been reported as of this writing.

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2009/11/26/213306.html