60-Year-Old Ms. Guan Peixia Tortured in Heizuizi Women's Prison for Six Years

Name: Guan Peixia
Gender: Female
Age: 60
Address: Unknown
Occupation: Unknown
Date of Most Recent Arrest: July 19th, 2003
Most recent place of detention: Heizuizi Women's Prison in Jilin Province
City: Changchun
Province: Jilin
Persecution Suffered: Detention, force-feedings, extortion, brainwashing, home ransacking, interrogation, beatings, injections, imprisonment, torture, physical constraint, solitary confinement

Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Guan Peixia from Jiaohe City, Jilin Province was sentenced to six years in prison for her belief. She has been savagely tortured at the Heizuizi Women's Prison in Jilin Province.

Ms. Guan Peixia began practising Falun Gong in June 1996. She used to suffer from numerous ailments and underwent surgery at age 42. She lost nearly all of her teeth. Falun Gong miraculously restored her health, and she changed into a completely different person.

Below is Ms. Guan Peixia's account of the brutal persecution she has suffered.

Jiaohe City 610 Office

I joined several practitioners on a trip to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong in February 2000. We were arrested on the train, taken back to Jiaohe City and detained for one day. Then I was held at the Songjiang County Conference Centre. The town officials and police went there to subject me and others to persecution. There was no heat in the room on February 14th, 2000. We were shivering and not given any food. They let our family members deliver food and clothes to us the next day. The persecutors followed us everywhere, including the toilet, and forbade us to study Falun Gong books or do the exercises. We went on a persecution protest hunger strike and were force-fed. We were held there for 42 days. Every practitioner in our group who went to Beijing was forced to pay 3,000 yuan¹, and those who didn't go to Beijing were each forced to pay them 2,000 yuan. Practitioners who held hunger strikes were each forced to pay a 40-yuan "forced-feeding fee" before we were released.

The next year, I saw a police car while walking down the street. Police officers Li Haifeng and Yang Zhaoman jumped out, grabbed my umbrella, threw it into the car and tried to shove me inside. Surprisingly, the two large men could not make me move, despite their best efforts. I sat on the ground and shouted, "The police are arresting an innocent person!" They grew afraid and drove off.

A year later, early in 2002, I again encountered deputy township head Zhang Chunyi, and Wei Yalan, Li Haifeng and Yang Zhaoman in the street. They demanded that I use my house and cow to guarantee that I would stop practising Falun Gong, but I refused. They took me to the town government, where deputy township head Zhang Chunyi and official Wei Yalan threatened me again and coerced me to write a guarantee statement to renounce Falun Gong. I lost consciousness at some point, and they brought in a doctor. More than a dozen people pinned me on the ground and gave me an injection in the heel. Then they sent me home.

I was arrested again in the spring of 2002. Officials from the Jiaohe City 610 Office (an organisation of special agents just for persecuting Falun Gong) and the police department took me to a brainwashing session held at the Longsheng Hotel. They sealed off a section of the hotel to prevent outsiders from knowing about the persecution.

I was arrested on July 19th, 2003 under the direction of Jiaohe City 610 Office agents, who also ransacked my home. Many officials arrived in eight cars. They pushed me into one of the vehicles and drove to the Criminal Police Division. Police officer Dai Zhenhua handcuffed me and began interrogating me. He kicked and hit me with a water bottle and handcuffed me to a chair at night.

They took me to a detention centre, where I went on a protest hunger strike. Detention centre head Cui and police officer Geng ordered the inmates to beat and then force-feed us. They tortured me daily and forced me to run. Doctor Zhang force-fed me and cursed at me all the time. He also injected me with unknown substances.

On the eleventh day of my detention, August 3rd, 2003, guards put me in handcuffs and shackles and took me to the Jiaohe City Court. Police officers formed three circles in front of the court, and plainclothes officers patrolled the grounds to prevent Falun Gong practitioners from entering the courthouse to audit the trial. Every audience member seated inside the courthouse was a Chinese Communist Party (CCP)-designated attendee. I was sentenced to six years in prison and sent to Jilin Province Women's Prison on August 14th, 2003.

Gross Abuse and Mistreatment at the Heizuizi Women's Prison

1. Prison Entrance Division at the Heizuizi Women's Prison

I was taken to the prison Entrance Division on August 14th, 2003. Convicted murderers Jiang Guizhi, Zhang Liyan and Xing were assigned to torture me. They took me to the fourth floor that night and kept me in a cell for the next three days. They forced me to sit on a small plastic stool and made me put my hands on my knees and stay still. When I closed my eyes from exhaustion, they claimed I was doing a Falun Gong exercise. Zhang Liyan kicked and cursed at me.

2. Abuse at Division 12

Two months later, I was transferred to Division 12 for the elderly and disabled. Division head Fu Shuping took me to the workshop and asked whether I would continue to practise Falun Gong. I answered, "There is nothing wrong with being a good person." She grabbed my shirt and swung me around, and later I returned to the cell.

One day I sat up in bed. Fu Shuping said I was doing a Falun Gong exercise. She grabbed a wooden crutch and hit my ankles, which turned black and blue.

On another occasion Fu Shuping came into the room and hit me with a broom while I sent righteous thoughts. Inmate Zhang Jinglan assaulted me many times because I refused to wear a prisoner's uniform or eat the food served to the inmates.

Tied to a bed

Because I refused to wear a badge that says "criminal" and also insisted on practising Falun Gong, Fu Shuping ordered inmates to tie me to a bed in the activity room. I held a hunger strike to protest. Inmate Jin Hao, who was assigned to take blood pressure measurements and deliver medications, said that my heartbeat was too fast. They let me return to the cell.

I never wore the prisoner's uniform. One day Fu Shuping led a group of inmates who carried me to a room on the second floor, used to "reform" [forcibly renounce Falun Gong] " Falun Gong practitioners. They put the uniform on me and tied me to a bed, where I went into convulsions. Fu Shuping ordered collaborator² Shao Ling from Huadian to give me acupuncture treatment. After I came to, they sent me back to the cell.

Solitary confinement and hanging-up

At first, prison officials would do roll calls many times a day. We later realised that we should not co-operate with them, so I refused to answer and stayed in my bed. Once guard Cao and Jin Shunhua walked up to my bed and dragged me off the upper bunk where I was sitting. They beat me until I became disoriented. Then they dragged me into the hall and told me to answer roll call. They locked me in solitary confinement, stretched out my arms and then hung me up. I went into convulsions later on. They put me on a wood cart and took me to the emergency at hospital. When my condition improved, they again sent me to the second floor. They hung a curtain on the door, and three inmates watched me.

Brutal force-feeding

I held a hunger strike to protest the persecution. Guard Cao tried to persuade me to eat something. She also instructed inmates to give me food, but I still did not eat anything. Seeing that I was ignoring them, they ordered inmate Ta Li to force-feed me on a daily basis. I vomited the first time and soiled my clothes. The next day they put me on the floor, stripped my clothes off and then fed me. Ta Li inserted a nasal tube, down into my stomach. Because I refused to co-operate with her, she stabbed the tube deep inside my stomach a few times. I could not breathe and again started convulsing. Ta Li removed the tube, and blood gushed out. I went to the toilet and vomited blood and white foam. I also had blood in my stool, and I stayed in the toilet for an entire afternoon. Despite my condition, Fu Shuping brought in ropes and tried to tie me up. The inmates told her that I was vomiting blood, and they let me go back to the cell.

3. Abuse and Mistreatment at the Education Division

The first time

Education Division guards led a group of inmates including Yang Hui, Ma Xiaoping and Zhang Wenjie and took me to Cell No. 5 at Group 2 of the Education Division on October 20th, 2006. This division holds many practitioners. The abuse and mistreatment there is the most brutal.

Twisting right arm out of joint for refusing to co-operate with brainwashing

The guards sent inmates Jin Yan, Ma Xiaoping, Zhang Wenjie, and Gao Haiyan to torture me. They told me to get up and study slanderous articles. I refused, so they beat me. Collaborators Liu Shurong, Zhang Lixin and Liu Fengrong bombarded me with vicious propaganda. Liu Shurong verbally and physically attacked me, but I refused to listen to their lies. Zhang Wenjie twisted my left arm to the back and Ma Xiaoping my right arm. My right forearm popped out of the socket, causing terrible pain. After that they purposely pulled on my right arm each time they took my blood pressure, which caused unbearable pain; on top of that I could not turn over in bed due to the pain. Collaborator Chen Yanmei hit me, and four inmates twisted my arms to the back. They lifted me up and threw me face down on the bed. My nose hit the wooden board and was severely bruised.

Forcing my lower back against a triangular metal bracket

Education Division persecutors covertly administer torture on the third floor. They began torturing me again there on November 14th, 2006 and forced me to wear a prison uniform. Inmate Yang Hui and other inmates threw my bedding on the floor to expose the metal frame in the bed, and then they put my lower body on the bed and left my upper body dangling toward the floor, so that the metal bracket was prodding against my lower back. To escalate the pain, they pushed down on my stomach to make the metal push harder against my back; they also pinched me and slid me back and forth and had someone sit on my arms. They did this four times, which caused permanent damage to my spine and back, and rendered me immobile for a long time.

Since the torture severely compromised my mobility, they took me to the hospital for an X-ray. It showed the torture had induced bone spur growth on my spine, which caused stiffness and pain. Inmate Peng, who used to be a doctor, said that this was obviously caused by external injury, and the prison doctor said I would be considered lucky if I could recover enough to take care of myself.

Force-feeding

I went on a protest hunger strike on October 20th, 2006. During each forced-feeding session, they forced between 1.5 kg and 2 kg of unknown food into my stomach, followed by pouring water down my throat to the extent that the water nearly came out of my mouth. They held me down to prevent me from vomiting or moving. When I struggled to get up, they grabbed my hair and smacked my head against a wall, causing several bumps. I did not want to open my eyes and felt dizzy all the time. I suffered from bouts of headaches and always wanted to sleep. When they could not insert the feeding tube, they blamed me for holding the hunger strike. Later on I vomited blood. They transported me from the fourth floor to the third floor on the 25th day of my hunger strike. After they took me to the third floor, they said that they would give me opportunities to eat. The next day when they saw that I still would not eat, inmate Ta Li inserted a feeding tube again and used a device to make sure the tube would stay in after the feeding.

Stretching bed

I still did not co-operate with them even after the painful force-feeding, so the guards stretched my arms and legs to the maximum and tied them to the four poles of a bed. My body hung in the air and did not touch the bed. Inmate Shang Wanfen chopped at my stretched arms with her hands to increase the pain. I could not take it anymore and agreed to eat. Then I was let down. They told me to read propaganda books. I said, "They are lies. I won't read them!" They again stretched me in the bed. The splitting pain was too much, so I reluctantly agreed to read the books. They put me down and I challenged the books' content, and they stretched me in the bed for the next two months. As a result, my hip joint became dislocated and my sciatic nerve was injured. I could barely stand or walk afterwards.

Abuses at the Education Division again

The prison officials held a meeting on August 23rd, 2007. The Education Division dissolved its original two groups and turned them into four groups, and another round of abuse began. All of the practitioners were forced to write guarantee statements to renounce Falun Gong.

Collaborators Liu Jingli, Song Huidan, Hu Jie, Zhou Runjun and Geng Jiqiu spoke with me on May 9th, 2008 and said my speech during the brainwashing session was not good enough. They took me to the third floor on May 16th, and inmates Wang Lixin and collaborator Sun Hongrui watched me. I had severe lower back pain from previous tortures, but they forced me to sit up and would not let me lean against the wall. I protested, and Wang Lixin knocked me to the ground. When I fell, she pulled me up and beat me again.

Standing on a stool

They made me remain standing on May 17th, 2008. I could not stand still due to the pain. They pushed me to a corner, but I still could not stand. Wang Lixin brought a wooden stool and pushed it against my shin, and that area on my leg turned black and blue. They turned a plastic stool upside down and told me to stand on the legs. I could not, and Wang Lixin and Sun Hongrui kicked me. I stood for an entire day. When I collapsed, they pulled me up and pushed me from the front, so I fell on the bed and the triangular metal piece jabbed against my back, which made the pain worse.

They then made me stand against the bed with my feet between the four legs of the stool with the stool upside down. They kicked the stool under the bed, and my feet moved with the stool, yet they told me to stand up straight. I had no choice but to cling to the railing or I would fall. Since the weight of my body rested on my arms, I could not last in this position and sat down. Wang Lixin and Sun Hongrui yanked me up and beat and kicked me. Seeing that I really could not stand with my feet under the bed, they pulled out the stool a little. I stood this way for more than ten days. My legs and feet swelled up so severely that the skin felt like it was about to burst.

Force-feeding again

I refused to eat the next morning to protest the abuse. Wang Lixin, Lin Li, Gao Haiyan, Fang Haidan, and Sun Hongrui mixed porridge, eggs, a rice cake and salted vegetables together and told me to eat it. I said, "This looks like pigs' feed. I will not touch it." They put the bowl on the floor, pushed my face into the bowl and pinched my nose shut. They pried my mouth open with a spoon and poured the food into my mouth. I nearly suffocated. I eventually agreed to eat.

Forbidden toilet use and change of soiled trousers

I still insisted that Falun Gong is good. They forbade me to use the toilet and hit me on a daily basis. They claimed I was thin and sick, and that I was holding a disguised hunger strike. They forced me to buy a half portion of porridge and an egg each day, in addition to eating a rice pancake given by the prison. They forced me to eat lots of food for each meal but would not let me use the trousers. I really could not hold it any longer the next day. Wang Lixin told me to urinate in my trousers, and they forced me to stay in the wet trousers afterwards. When the inmates came back from work in the evening, they told me to change in front of them, in order to humiliate me. The inmates said, "You are shameless and useless." They would not let me wash the soiled trousers and threw away my winter jacket. They forced me to wipe the dirty trousers with toilet paper. They also told me to buy ten more pairs of sweatpants. They claimed that I had made the plastic stool dirty and told me to buy another stool. I refused, and they verbally attacked me. They continued to deny me toilet access on the third day, and as a result I wet another pair of trousers. They again did not let me change until after the inmates came back from work, and they threw away the soiled pair of trousers. I had no choice but to wear cargo trousers because that was the only thing I had left. I urinated in them again. They only let me wash it briefly.

Stepping on my feet

Wang Lixin held onto the bed railing and stomped on my feet. I could not bear the pain and moved my feet back, but she pulled my feet out and did it again. Sun Hongrui and Lin Li did the same thing until the back of my right foot turned black and blue and my feet hurt as if the bones had shattered. I still insisted, "Falun Gong is good." They removed the stool and forced me to stand for two more weeks.

Hanging upside-down and rolling my arms against the bed boards

They stretched me out in bed again but did not tie me up too tightly. They claimed that they were "giving me a chance to repent." They eventually untied my hands and hung me upside down. Wang Lixin and Sun Hongrui rolled my arms against the bed boards, and Lin Li and Fang Haidan spread my toes apart until I could not bear it.

Chopping with a wooden board

They made me sit, and Sun Hongrui and Liu Xiue continued to torture me. Sun Hongrui hit me with wooden boards and told me to write reports once a week, to report my thoughts to her. They made me write repentance statements³ daily and demanded to know the meaning of every sentence of what I wrote. They also demanded to know what I said to other people, and if I denied having said something, they would hit me.

I was extremely weak from torture. They made me go to the cafeteria and get food, and would not let me hold onto the wall when walking. I could not do it. They ordered me to crawl to the cafeteria and told me to clean the toilet. I could not squat for a long time, so I supported myself with one arm against the floor and used the other hand to clean the toilet.

I developed high blood pressure on November 26th, 2008 and had constant chest pain. The injuries in my lower back area turned into chronic spondylitis, sciatica and migraines. The left half of my body, hand and foot became numb, and my left eye and the left corner of my mouth drooped, and I would drool uncontrollably.

My nose started to bleed and I vomited chunks of blood on December 8th, 2008 that lasted until July 15th, 2009. The guards told me to take some medication before I left the prison, because they feared that I would die on the way home.

It is hard to describe all of the daily physical and mental tortures I have suffered in prison over the past six years.

Note

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

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

3. Repentance Statement: In this 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://minghui.org/mh/articles/2009/12/21/214797.html