Falun Gong Practitioners Endure Unbearable Tortures Involving Their Eyes

Chinese Communist Party (CCP) agents have employed many methods to torture Falun Gong practitioners, with many types of torture targeting practitioners' eyes. In lawyer Gao Zhisheng's open letter on December 12th, 2005, he reviewed cases of Falun Gong practitioners who had been subjected to severe physical abuse and mistreatment under the CCP's persecution. In three practitioners' cases, several types of abuse specifically targeted the practitioners' eyes. Many other cases of brutal torture methods targeting practitioners' eyes have been recorded on the Clearwisdom website. These cases are partially summarised below:

1. Practitioners' Eyes Harmed to the Point of Blindness During Violent Beatings

Mr. Li Yunbiao from Changshuihe Farm, Bei'an City, Heilongjiang Province, was arrested and held in the Huayuan Farm. Police officer Li Chunwei and another guard used a white plastic tube to beat Mr. Li for more than an hour, resulting in him falling many times. His front teeth were knocked out, and he bled from the nose and mouth. In extreme pain, Mr. Li stood up and looked the guards straight in their eyes. Li Chunwei then beat him even harder and caused him to lose sight in his left eye. (http://www.clearwisdom.net/html/articles/2009/11/13/112354.html)

Mr. Han Zhong from Nanhu, Anhui Province, was sent to the Nanhu Forced Labour Camp in 2006. One day on his way to the workshop, two criminal detainees stopped him and started to harass him. The guards came out to investigate. One of the guards struck Mr. Han's head with a metal lunch box wrapped in steel wire. Another guard punched Mr. Han in his right eye, which started to bleed. The third guard continued beating him thereafter. He was then dragged into an office and left there. Later on, Mr. Han repeatedly requested to have his eyes checked, but his requests only incurred more beatings. When he eventually had his eyes checked on April 5th, 2007, he was confirmed to have been blinded in his right eye. (http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2007/12/2/91795.html)

Ms. Peng Yinfeng, 60, from the Xingang Development District in Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province, was incarcerated in the Huangpu Brainwashing Centre in March 2004. Perpetrators' beatings blinded her, and her eyeball was knocked out during the torture.

Ms. Sun Shuxiang, 48, was arrested and detained nine times in six years of persecution. She recounted: “One day in the second half of 2001, Li Zhenping, officer from the Xingye Street Police Station, came to my home with another man to persuade my husband to divorce me. I said I would not consent. He [Li] kept hitting my face until it swelled, my eyes bled, and I couldn't see things clearly.”

Ms. Liu Shuqin, 60, recounted: “610 Office agents (an organisation of special agents just for persecuting Falun Gong) continually beat me. I was then taken to the No.3 Detention Centre at midnight. The guards punched me, targeting my eyes, I saw stars and could hardly see for a while.”

Ms. Yang Jusheng, 67, was an employee of the Shuangfeng County Food Company in Hunan Province. She was detained at the Baimalong Women's Forced Labour Camp twice. Ms. Yang was deprived of sleep, during which time she was not even allowed to close her eyes, for 13 days. When she closed her eyes, guard Yuan Jia ordered a drug addict prisoner to hit her eyes more than 100 times. (http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2007/5/22/85963.html)

2. Shocking Eyes with Electric Baton

Following Ms. Sun Shuxiang's second arrest in 2002, after already having been subjected to physical abuse and torture, she was subjected to torture targeting her eyes. She said: “The officers targeted my eyes with the electric baton. I felt as if my eyes were about to fall out, and I could hardly see.” (http:/www.clearwisdom.net/html/articles/2009/11/11/112242.html)

3. Choked with Cigarette Smoke and Burning with Cigarette Butts

Ms. Wang Yuhuan was at death's door nine times as a result of severe abuse and torture while in detention. She recounted: “After they tortured me with the tiger bench¹ method for over four hours, I was close to death. They put a metal bucket over my head. Seven police officers smoked three cigarettes each and blew the smoke into the bucket for more than an hour. I choked and fainted many times. They brought me to by pouring cold water over me. Before I was completely clear-headed, they burned my eyelids with cigarette butts. The pain was indescribable.” (http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2007/10/15/90516.html)

4. Exposed to Strong Light

Mr. Guo Xiaojun, a former lecturer at the Computer Science Department in Shanghai Jiaotong University, was arrested on January 8th, 2010, by the Baoshan District Police Department Domestic Security Division in Shanghai. The police tortured him using the "stewing the eagle" method: He had to sit facing three spotlights above his head for a long time, as a result of which he suffered from transitory blindness at least once a month, and his vision is still very blurred. Nanhui Prison Hospital doctors diagnosed him with a “retinal artery spasm” on January 8th, 2011; it is a sudden symptom caused by strong stimulation of one's eyes, which can result in permanent blindness if not treated in a timely and effective manner. (http://www.clearwisdom.net/html/articles/2010/8/24/119587.html)

5. Putting Chilli, Mustard, Essential Balm Oils, and Other Foreign Substances into Practitioners' Eyes

Ms. Yang Xianfeng from the Shashi District, Jingzhou City, Hubei Province, was arrested on March 6th, 2001, and detained in the Yingguanshanzhuang Resort, in Zhongshan Park, where she was tortured. Police injected chilli water into her eyes and mouth, and tortured her for nine days, depriving her of sleep. They did not stop torturing her until she lost consciousness. (http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2008/4/16/96466.html)

Ms. Zhu Yinfang from Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, was arrested and taken to the Nanmusi Forced Labour Camp. Criminal detainee Chen Liyan dripped essential balm oils into Ms. Zhu's eyes. It was so irritating that she couldn't keep her eyes open, but Chen beat her when she closed her eyes.
Ms. Tan Shaowei from Puhui Village in the Guangzhou City's Development District was arrested and taken to the Hongshan Addiction Treatment Centre in July 2002. After having been forced to drink dirty water and stabbed with needles all over her body, she was subjected to another round of torture. The perpetrators put mustard around her eyes, nose, and mouth to make her eyes tear, her nose run, and her mouth salivate. They then collected all of the secretions and forced her to swallow them. (http://clearwisdom.net/html/articles/2010/12/22/122053.html and
http://www.clearwisdom.net/html/articles/2010/12/23/122072.html)

A similar torture method is applied widely in another brainwashing facility in Guangzhou City, “Huangpu District Thought Education Study Centre.” Ms. Fan Meixia, who lives in the Haizhu District in Guangzhou City, recounted, “The perpetrators forced me to lie on the floor face up and then dripped hot pepper juice, hard liquor or hot mustard into my nostrils and eyes.” (http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2004/9/17/52518.html)

Ms. Wang Minli from Jilin City was arrested in March 2007 and detained at the Yueshan Road Police Dog Base in Jilin City, where Domestic Security Division agents savagely beat and tortured her. They poured a bottle of spicy mustard oil into her eyes, causing blindness in one eye. (http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2007/7/14/87681.html)

Ms. Zhang Quiqin from Qiqihar City, Heilongjiang Province was arrested in April 2001 and taken to the Tiefeng Criminal Police Team, where the police poured soapy water into her eyes.

6. Variations of 'Stewing the Eagle' Torture of the Eyes

Ms. Hou Lihua from Mudanjiang City, Heilongjiang Province, was arrested by officers from the Aimin Police Department. The perpetrators tortured her around the clock for five days, not allowing her to sleep. If Ms. Hou closed her eyes, they would pull her eyelids apart. (http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2009/2/21/104998.html)

When Ms. Li Xiuzhen from Weifang City, Shandong Province was held in Jinan Prison, she was deprived of sleep for 28 days. When she could no longer keep her eyes open, the perpetrators stuck scotch tape around her eye sockets and pulled it up and down. Sometimes, they even used the end of a broom to prop open her eyelids.(http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2005/1/19/56709.html)

7. Flicking Practitioners' Eyeballs

Mr. Wang Guiming from Tonghua City, Jilin Province, was subjected to physical abuse and mistreatment in Ward One of Jilin Prison. Criminal detainees flicked his eyeballs with the thumb and middle finger, after which he experienced great pain and his vision blurred. (http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2005/2/14/57530.html)

8. Perpetrators Kill Practitioner to Cover Up Blinding Her Eye

Ms. Li Shuhua lived on Peiying Street, Yushu City, Jilin Province. She was arrested because she delivered Falun Gong informational materials downloaded from the Clearwisdom website to her illegally detained husband. She was held in the Yushu Detention Centre, where several police officers tortured her. They put her head inside a plastic bag and used needles to prick her fingertips, arms, back and chest. It was very painful and Ms. Li cried out. The police officer hit her so hard in the eye that her eyeball was knocked out. Ms. Li was in extreme pain and immediately fainted. The police officials became frightened and asked upper-level officials what they should do: They were told to kill her to cover up the crime of torture. (http://www.clearwisdom.net/html/articles/2010/2/7/114489.html)

9. Deceased Practitioners' Remains Show that Their Eyes Were Targeted for Torture Before Their Death

Mr. Wang Jinzhong from Shenyang City, Liaoning Province, died as a result of abuse and mistreatment in prison. His body was naked except for his underwear. His eyes were open after he died, and his eye sockets were black-and-blue and sunken. His mouth was open, his cheekbones were protruding, and his cheeks were heavily bruised. Skin hung from his neck, both of his shoulders were narrow and his arms looked extremely thin, as did his ribs, pelvis, thighs, legs and feet. His whole body was skin and bones, bent and emaciated, weighing under 70 pounds. Four armed policemen hurried to carry it away (http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2009/6/26/108599.html)

Many reports describing practitioners' eyes being targeted in various tortures have been posted on the Clearwisdom website. Three reports published on the Chinese version of this website on March 23rd, 2011, described abuse that targeted practitioners' eyes.

The report “Wrongdoings of Officer Chen Lixin from the Baoshan Town Police Station, Fengcheng City” stated: “Chen Lixin punched a practitioner in his face and eyes and kicked him in front of his father. The practitioner's father said, 'I've lived to such an old age, but I've never seen anyone do such an evil deed against someone like my son who strives to be a good person.'”

The report “Guards in Jinzhong Prison in Shanxi Province Instigate Criminal Detainees to Beat Wang Zhigang Cruelly Until They Blinded Him” stated: “Anyone who comes in contact with Mr. Wang Zhigang knows that he is sincere, kind, tolerant and helpful. Mr. Wang started practising Falun Gong in 1996. He almost exhausted his income from his business after donating 15,000 yuan² when massive floods hit the country in August 1998. Taiyuan Evening newspaper reported on his good deed. Such an outstanding young man was subjected to such a brutal beating for no reason, which caused great harm to him, physically and mentally.” Although Mr. Wang became blind as a result of the torture, he continues to strive to conduct himself according to the Falun Gong principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance.

Today, many Falun Gong practitioners continue to suffer severe physical abuse and mistreatment under the CCP's persecution, including by torture methods targeting their eyes.

Note

1. "Tiger Bench": Prisoners are forced to sit on a small iron bench that is approximately 20 cm (6 inches) tall with their knees tied together. With their hands tied behind their backs or sometimes placed on their knees, they are forced to sit straight up and look straight ahead without movement for long periods of time.

2. "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://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2011/4/5/238560.html