Chen Zhizhong of Dezhou City, Shandong Province Sentenced to Forced Labour Again

Name: Chen Zhizhong
Gender: Male
Age: Approximately 50
Address: Jingfeng Community, Decheng District of Dezhou City, Shandong Province
Occupation: Unknown

Date of Most Recent Arrest: September 16th, 2009
Most Recent Place of Detention: Zhangqiu Forced Labour Camp, Jinan City
City: Jinan
Province: Shandong
Persecution Suffered: Imprisonment, home ransacked, extortion, forced labour

In late October 2009, Mr. Chen Zhizhong from Dezhou City, Shandong Province was sentenced to forced labour again for practising Falun Gong. His family questioned policeman Zhang Xikun, "Why didn't you notify the family when you took him away?" Zhang replied, "There is no reason. I had to do it. Back in 2001, we sentenced him to three years of forced labour. This time we are not as tough and will sentence him to only one year."

On the evening of September 16th, 2009, Zhang Xikun, head of the Politics and Security Division of Decheng District Police Department, policeman Liu Dawei, policewoman Duan Huijun, and two deputy police chiefs of Changzhuang Township Police Station surnamed Ren and Xia broke into Chen Zhizhong's home. They restrained Mr. Chen and his wife to their sofa, and then ransacked their home. Subsequently, they confiscated personal belongings including a personal computer, a paper-cutting machine, six printers, a pair of pliers, a wrench, a mobile phone battery, and 13,200 yuan¹ in cash. When the couple tried to intervene, Liu Dawei claimed they had obtained the money, and then attempted to take Mr. Chen's wife into custody.

Mr. Chen was jailed in the Dezhou City Detention Centre. His wife and family went to the Decheng District Police Department and requested his release. Liu Dawei yelled at Mr. Chen's wife, struck her, and attempted to detain her. A month later, Mr. Chen's family went to the detention centre to bring him some clothes, and found out that he had been secretly sentenced to a forced labour term and transferred to the Zhangqiu Forced Labour Camp in Jinan City. On the day he was taken to the forced labour camp, he was diagnosed with severely high blood pressure, so the camp authorities refused to take custody of him. Liu Dawei bribed the camp authorities with the money he had confiscated from Mr. Chen's home, and insisted on the camp taking custody of Mr. Chen.

Soon after, Mr. Chen was taken to the forced labour camp. His family went to visit him, but the authorities refused their visitation.

Mr. Chen Zhizhong was introduced to Falun Gong by an acquaintance in 1995. After reading the Falun Gong book, Zhuan Falun, he found answers to all the questions that had puzzled him during his life. Since then, he has conducted himself according to the principles of Truthfulness-Benevolence-Forbearance. His health has been good, and his family life harmonious.

On July 20th, 1999, the Chinese Communist Party and Jiang Zemin, [former leader of China and instigator of the persecution] started the persecution of Falun Gong. Mr. Chen Zhizhong was identified by the authorities as one of the key practitioners, and tried to arrest him. He was forced to leave home to avoid the persecution. On February 10th, 2002, one day prior to the Chinese New Year, he was reported to the authorities. Policemen from the Dezhou City and the Decheng District Tiexi Police Stations arrested Mr. Chen, and detained him in the Wangcun Forced Labour Camp for three years.

After Mr. Chen's release, officers from the Changzhuang Police Station in Decheng District went to his home regularly to harass him and his family. During the Olympic Games in Beijing in 2008, several policemen broke into his home, and then forced him to provide his cell phone and home phone numbers in order for them to tap his phones.

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.ca/mh/articles/2010/1/1/215464.html