Mr. Gao Jianting Tortured by Laiyang Police on Suspicion of Helping Ms. Liu Zhimei

Name: Gao Jianting
Gender: Male
Age: Unknown
Address: Unknown
Occupation: Driver

Date of Most Recent Arrest: 21st May, 2010
Most recent Place of Detention: Laiyang City Domestic Security Division
City: Laiyang City
Province: Shandong Province
Persecution Suffered: Sleep deprivation, brainwashing, beatings, hung up, solitary confinement, torture, extortion, physical restraint, home ransacked, interrogation
Key Persecutors: Ma Shuguang, He Xiao, Liang Bin, Sun, Yu, Wang Yubin

Laiyang City 610 Office (an organisation of special agents just for persecuting Falun Gong) personnel in Shandong Province suspected that Mr. Gao Jianting helped arrange care for Ms. Liu Zhimei. Ms. Liu was a student in Tsinghua University who was expelled and suffered a mental collapse after enduring extensive inhuman treatment. At 5:00 p.m. on May 21st, 2010, officers from the Laiyang City Police Department and the Laiyang City Domestic Security Division arrested him. They held him in the domestic security division, the crime response squad, a brainwashing centre in the Party school, and the Zhaoyuan Brainwashing Centre. Mr. Gao was released a week later after suffering brutal beatings. The police still unlawfully held onto his car.

Followed and Arrested

On April 16th, 2010, officers from the Bailinzhuang Police Station in Laiyang City arrested Ms. Liu Zhimei, Ms. Gao Chunhong, and three other practitioners. Shortly afterwards, members of the Laiyang City 610 Office suspected that Mr. Gao Jianting had also helped take care of Ms. Liu. They sent out special agents to place him under surveillance. Plainclothes officers also followed him and were stationed in surveillance vehicles outside the shop where he works.

Ms. Liu Zhimei is from Sanqing Village in Tuanwang Town, Laiyang City. In 1997, she was admitted to Tsinghua University after making the highest test score in all of Shandong Province. In 2001, at age 21, she was sentenced to 12 years in prison for practising Falun Gong. She was taken to the Shandong Women's Prison, where she suffered extensive inhuman treatment. In November 2008, just three days prior to her release from the prison, she was injected twice with an unknown substance, which caused her to lose her memory. Her mother, who had been bedridden, died soon after seeing her mentally disordered daughter who had lost her memory. Ms. Liu ended up living with her father, who had not been known as a good role model in the neighbourhood.

Several local female Falun Gong practitioners took Ms. Liu to live with them, taking turns taking care of her. Ms. Liu was recovering from her mental problems and was able to take care of herself. Then, on April 16th, 2010, officers from the Bailinzhuang Police Station arrested her, Ms. Gao Chunhong, and three other practitioners.

At around 5:00 p.m. on May 21st, 2010, Mr. Gao Jianting left the shop where he worked at to go to the restroom about 50 yards away. Ma Shuguang, a member of the 610 Office of the Laiyang City Domestic Security Division, rushed out at Mr. Gao from his hiding place. He approached Mr. Gao from the behind, grabbed him around the neck, and almost suffocated him. As soon as Mr. Gao caught his breath, he shouted, "Who are you?" Ma replied, "I'm from the police department." Mr. Gao realised what was about to happen and shouted, "Falun Gong is great! The police are arresting good people!"

Home Ransacked

Ma was scared, so he threw Mr. Gao hard on the floor in the restroom. He held Mr. Gao's head down and ordered two people who were not aware of the situation to call the police. Several officers arrived and put Mr. Gao in a car. He was taken to the Domestic Security Division in the police department. They threw him on the floor and took everything from his pockets, including two memory devices, a car key, a ring of other keys, as well as the seven yuan in cash he had. The police then went back to the store where he worked and stole the Santana owned by Mr. Gao's employer, the owner of the store. The officers drove the car to the courtyard of the police department and took the plates off.

At around 7:00 or 8:00 p.m., Ma Shuguang, He Xiao, and another officer, led by Wang Yubin, the security director of the Xishanting area, arrived at Mr. Gao's rented home in a van. They kicked the door. After the landlord opened the door, they ransacked Mr. Gao's home. Mr. Gao's elderly third aunt was seriously ill. The officers showed no sympathy. One officer even cursed her. The elderly lady was intimated and remained unnerved for days.

The police confiscated a satellite receiver, a DVD drive, a mouse, several cell phone batteries, and several telephone and address notebooks. They even took away stickers and staplers used by kids in school. Before the police left, Wang Yubin, the security director, signed the search warrant without consulting Mr. Gao's family or relatives.

Interrogated and Tortured

At around 9:00 p.m. the police took Mr. Gao to the Crime Response Squad. Mr. Gao shouted, "Falun Gong is great!" as soon as he got out of the car. Ma Shuguan, He Xiao, and Liang Bin punched and kicked him. Liang hit his chin so hard that he almost dislocated Mr. Gao's jaw. Ma stuffed a dirty cloth into his mouth. They threw him on the ground, then stepped on his left foot, which swelled right away.

He was then taken to the interrogation room. The officers restrained him on an iron chair. The officers tortured him for three days and nights. Ma, He, Liang, another officer with the surname Sun, and a fifth officer took part in the torture and interrogation. They tried to find out who took Ms. Liu from her home to take care of her. The officers fabricated charges, stating that taking care of Ms. Liu amounted to detaining her against her will.

They deprived Mr. Gao oof sleep. Even closing his eyes would result in cursing and beatings. The officers continue to step on his injured left foot. They also grabbed his collarbones and shoulders to cause excruciating pain.

Mr. Gao told them it was against the law to torture him during interrogation, and he intended to sue them. Ma Shuguang yelled, "Torture is exactly what I will resort to during interrogation. You want to sue? Go ahead."

Liang Bin pulled Mr. Gao's head back by his hair, He Xiao pressed his head backward, and Ma Shuguang slapped his face with a Falun Gong book over a dozen times. Ma kept yelling, "You want to sue me? You want to sue? You want to sue so much?"

Mr. Gao's entire face swelled. His lips remained dark purple for a long time. He could not open his mouth to eat. The officers took turns whipping his hands and legs with leather belts. They yelled, "You want to remain silent? You see how you're going to die. We have plenty of time. We have all sorts of methods. We will see if you can remain silent. This is just the beginning." After three days of brutality, the officers did not get a single word out of Mr. Gao.

The Brainwashing Centre

On May 24th, the officers took Mr. Gao to a brainwashing centre in the Laiyang City Party School. He was handcuffed to heating pipes. Even at night, he was handcuffed and could not sleep on the ground. The following day, Officer Yu from the Yantai Domestic Security Division came to talk to Mr. Gao. Yu had been active in persecuting Falun Gong. He resorted all sorts of threats and deception. In the end, he said, "Since you have refused to say anything, I will see you this time next year in the prison or labour camp." Mr. Gao replied, "This is not something you have a final say in." Yu laughed without restraint, saying "You know who approves labour camp terms? It is no one other than me! You can see whether I have the final say or not." He told Laiyang City police officers, "Just complete the paperwork and take him away."

On the afternoon of May 26th, the police took Mr. Gao to the Zhaoyuan Brainwashing Centre. The brainwashing centre is located in a deserted gold mine halfway up the mountain. It is a dozen miles from the city. Security was tight. No one can tell it is a brainwashing centre from the outside. It has been in existence for almost ten years. Practitioners have been taken there throughout the years, and some were unlawfully held there for a year before release. At least three practitioners are being held there now. Four former practitioners who have betrayed their belief are working there to carry out the persecution.

Practitioners in the brainwashing centre are held in isolation, each in a separate cell. A chamber pot is placed in the cell, and no one leaves the cell to use the restroom. Anyone who refuses to co-operate is handcuffed. Lunch is only one bun and a mouthful of vegetables. Some porridge plus a little preserved vegetables make up the dinner menu. The conditions would drive one crazy if one was held there for an extended period of time.

Mr. Gao refused to co-operate. On the afternoon of May 28th, the Laiyang police took him back to the Laiyang City Domestic Security Division, citing the fact that he did not pass the physical. They asked Mr. Gao's younger brother to bring 3,000 yuan¹ to the Domestic Security Division in exchange for his release. Mr. Gao's brother did not co-operate. The police then ordered his family to take him home. They made up transcripts, then took out the search warrant to coerce Mr. Gao to sign it, which he refused to do. They then told him to sign the list of items the police confiscated. Mr. Gao asked for a copy of the list, and the officers first agreed. Then they reneged on their words. They forced him to sign a form for "parole pending further investigation" before releasing him.

After returning home, Mr. Gao and his employer went back to the Domestic Security Division, demanding the return of the car. The police made up excuses and asked for all sorts of paperwork to avoid returning the car, despite the fact the the car has a full set of transaction and registration records. The police are still holding the car in the police department.

Note

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

Chinese version available at http://minghui.org/mh/articles/2010/6/14/225376.html