Retired Professor Zhang Yougao from Chongqing University Persecuted

Name: Zhang Yougao
Gender: Male
Age: Seventies
Address: Residential District A of Chongqing University at Shapingba District
Occupation: Retired professor
Date of Most Recent Arrest: March 9th, 2002
Most recent place of detention: Xishanping Forced Labour Camp, Chongqing
City: Chongqing
Province: Sichuan
Persecution Suffered: Detention, living under surveillance, electric shock, home ransacked, brainwashing, beatings, torture.

On May 13th, 2009, Zhang Kai and Li Chunfu, two lawyers from Beijing, were hired by the family of Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Jiang Xiqing, to investigate his death at Xishanping Forced Labour Camp in Chongqing. The police beat both of them once they arrived in Chongqing. They were handcuffed, arrested, and taken to a police station.

On May 14th, over ten police officers arrived at Residential District A of Chongqing University in the Shapingba District of Chongqing. They tried to break into the home of 70-year-old retired Professor Zhang Yougao. The 610 Office (an organisation of special agents just for persecuting Falun Gong) and police asked him repeatedly behind the security door of Mr. Zhang's home whether he was involved in hiring the lawyers from Beijing.

Mr. Zhang refused to answer, so the police then tried to break into his home. Mr. Zhang and his family warned the police that it was illegal to break into peoples' homes without cause.

Since that day, the police and officers dressed in plainclothes have hung around his home and watched him every day. They have monitored and besieged his home for over a month.

Mr. Zhang was a senior engineer, professor at Chongqing University, and optical electronics scientist. He was also a leader of the Three River Gorges Project research group, and was recognised as an advanced worker several times. He was persecuted and sent to a forced labour camp just because he practises Falun Gong and believes in Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) uses the media to spread lies, claiming that he has now been "reformed" [forcibly renounced Falun Gong]. This is one method they use to deceive the public into supporting the persecution. Behind the scenes, the CCP continued to torture him.

When the persecution began on July 20th, 1999, Chinese state TV started to slander Falun Gong nationwide. Mr. Zhang Yougao told Liu Dewen, Party secretary of Chongqing University, and Zhao Xiuyu, Deputy Party secretary of Chongqing University, that everything the CCP was saying about Falun Gong was not at all true and that the practice was truly good. He used his own experience to explain how Falun Gong changed him and how the practice teaches people to improve by following the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. He explained that after practising, many people become healthier and happier, and that it actually saved the government a great deal in medical costs.

In June 2000, Mr. Zhang went to Beijing and tried to tell the government that Falun Gong was good and beneficial to people and to society. For this he was arrested by officers from Fuyou Street Police Station. He was tortured with electric batons for 40 minutes straight. His skin was burned all over. He was even forced to pay 50 yuan for taking pictures of himself and was then sent to Xishanping Forced Labour Camp for one year. Because he refused to give up his belief, his term was extended to a year and a half.

During that time, Mr. Zhang continued telling the guards and inmates that Falun Gong makes people healthier while improving one's moral standard. Guard Gao Ding lied and said that he had "reformed" Mr. Zhang. Wang Leiming, Cheng Kaixing, Ling Weijia, and reporters from Xinhua Agency interviewed Gao Ding and wrote an article about Gao's, experience, which was published on June 17 by Xinhua Agency from Beijing. The article, entitled "Don't Believe It Cannot Be Changed," was published on Legal Daily, Fujian Daily electronic version, in Zhejiang Online. In the labour camp, guards forced Falun Gong practitioners to learn how Mr. Zhang was "reformed," trying to break their will and get them to give up their practice. Mr. Zhang however, exposed the lie right away. Gao Ding also wrote a fake report titled "Convinced with Reasons," which was broadcast on July 27th, 2001, by China Radio International.

After his release in early 2002, he steadfastly persevered in his belief in Falun Gong, and resisted all of the brainwashing classes' lies. On March 9th he was once again taken from his home by the police as they rummaged through it. He was then detained at the Chongqing University Police Station. The University sent him to the brainwashing sessions organised by the local CCP government, following orders from the 610 Office. He was later sent to the Training and Rectification Team at Xishanping Forced Labour Camp, in Chongqing. He was later sent to the Education Team for further persecution. The teams are about half a mile apart.

Xishanping Forced Labour Camp is a living hell. Guards and inmates claim that their torture methods "guarantee" that practitioners will be "reformed." Mr. Zhang Yougao was subjected to two methods of torture, including being dragged while on his back and having his joints beaten with a club. The guards incited two inmates, Xia Xianke and Fan Shuanshuan, to grab Mr. Zhang's hands while running up and down the hills, dragging him on his back for more then a half mile. Mr. Zhang's shoes were worn out from being dragged.

Mr. Zhang was later detained at the strictly controlled group at the Education Team. Inmate Deng Ping used a cloth to gag Mr. Zhang and the used a large club to repeatedly strike his kneecaps.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2010/1/23/216771.html