Walls Used as Instruments to Torture Falun Gong Practitioners

In the torture of Falun Gong practitioners, Chinese police and prison guards have invented many methods in which they use walls.

1. "Sticking" to the wall

In this torture method, guards demand that practitioners press against a wall for long periods of time. Some even put a piece of paper between the practitioner and wall that may not fall to the ground.

In Fangqiang Forced Labour Camp in Jiangsu Province, the guards forced practitioners to have their noses, abdomens and toes, or back of the head, buttocks and heels touch the wall at the same time. Should the practitioners move or refuse the order, the guards beat them. They have to stand like this for long periods of time. Sometimes a washbasin is placed on top of the head of a practitioner, and water may not be spilled from it. Others are forced to hold heavy objects in their hands while they face the wall.

In Nanmusi Women's Forced Labour Camp, guards torture even practitioners in their fifties with the wall method. Those below 50 have to raise their arms while facing the wall. This torture is called "flying." The practitioners have to hold that position from 16 to 17 hours.

In Guangdong Province Women's Prison, guards force practitioners to hold a book on their head, a piece of paper under each arm, a piece of paper between the legs and a piece of paper between the back and the wall, while they face the wall.

When implementing this torture, guards sometimes force practitioners to keep their legs wide apart, with arms held up straight to the side. This method is called the "house lizard."

In Tuanhe Forced Labour Camp in Beijing, practitioners are forced to sit still with their knees against the wall and their eyes a foot away from the wall. This torture is called "sit against the wall."

2. Resting the head against the wall

The practitioner has to be away from a wall and tilt the body, while keeping the back straight, with the face down until the head rests against the wall. The further away from the wall, the more pressure is on the head. Sometimes, instead of a wall, a practitioner has to rest the head on the corner of a wall or the corner of a bed frame.

The "dig the wall" method requires the practitioner to lean her head against the wall or a corner while the upper body is perpendicular to the lower body. Sometimes, practitioners are told to touch their toes with their fingers or hold an object between their head and the wall. Mr. Ouyang Ming in the Shizishan Rehabilitation Centre (a forced labour camp) in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, and Ms. Shi Shuangshuang in Majialong Women's Forced Labour Camp in Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province, are often subjected to this torture.

Ms. Xia Cuilan from Pengze County, Jiangxi Province was tortured by this method in Majialong Forced Labour Camp. The guards forced her to push her head against the steel rod of a bed frame for 24 hours while standing on the tips of his toes. Almost all of her body weight was being borne by the head. The crown of her head sunk in and some of her hair fell out.

3. Smashed against the wall

In 2007, Ms. Shen Zili from Qiqihar was arrested. The police tied her to a chair, grabbed her by the hair and smashed her into a wall until she fainted.

Sometimes the guards hammer nails into the wall and the torture is called "smash the nails." In Qilihu Women's Forced Labour Camp in Shayang, Hubei Province, guards forced Ms. Chen Jianghong to place her head against a wall full of nails while her upper body was perpendicular with her lower body ("dig the wall"). If Ms. Chen moved, the guard grabbed her head and smashed it into the nails. Ms. Chen's head was severely injured and covered in blood.

Another torture method is "hammer the heart." A practitioner is forced to stand with her back against a wall. Guards then punch the practitioner's chest repeatedly. Mr. Ouyang Ming in the Shizishan Rehabilitation Centre was subjected to this torture.

In the First Detention Centre in Yiyang City, Hunan Province, guards forced Mr. Zhang Chunqiu to kneel on the ground with his back against the wall. A prisoner would run toward Mr. Zhang and knee him in the chest. This continued until Mr. Zhang spat out blood.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2010/5/25/224222.html