Recent Abuse in Hebei Province Women's Forced Labour Camp

Guards abused Falun Gong practitioners last month in the Third Ward of the Hebei Province Women's Forced Labour Camp. The abuse took place under the direction of warden Feng Kezhuang, Third Ward head Liu Ziwei and political director Liu Yaqin. Practitioners were subjected to lengthy brutal beatings and electric shocks.

Enslaved to work in Sweatshops, Forced to Sing Communist Songs and Prison Terms Extended

The Third Ward is the major money-making unit in the prison. Most of the imprisoned are Falun Gong practitioners. The rest are those who appealed to the central government about local issues. The guards use beating and electric shocks to force all of the imprisoned to work as slave labourers. Their work is demanding. They start at 7:30 a.m., have lunch break at noon, and work again from 1:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Occasionally, they have to work one to two hours overtime.

The Third Ward processes tricolour cleaning towels for the Hebei Yikang Knitwear and Textile Co. Ltd and Shijiazhuang Yifa Textile Co. Ltd. The companies share the same address at 177 East Nanhuan Road, Lingshou County, Hebei Province. The sales persons are Liu Fengju and Zhang Chunhui.

While enslaving them, the guards force the practitioners to sing songs which praise the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) before meals. In addition to this, the Third Ward subjects practitioners to brainwashing, coercing them to “transform” [forcibly renounce Falun Gong]. The camp announced last August that they extended the prison terms of practitioners who refused to undergo brainwashing. The practitioners and some people who previously appealed to the central government went on strike to protest the mistreatment.

Six Practitioners were Subjected to Brutal Beatings and Electric Shocks for Two and a Half Days

Abuse took place on Monday morning, August 15th, 2011, after warden Feng Kezhuang called for a meeting with senior members of the Third Ward.

All imprisoned were made to stand still in the great hall. About a dozen guards including Lu Yaqin (guard ID 1356086), Liu Ziwei (ID 1356101), Li Xin (ID 1356055), Zhang Jingjing (ID 1356054), Wang Haiyan (ID 1356092), Zhang Meng (ID 1356039), and two male guards (IDs 1356073 and 1356062) came in with electric batons and handcuffs. Practitioners Ms. Feng Ruixue, Ms. Liu Suran, Ms. Zhao Ye, Ms. Zhang Ni, Ms. Qi Junling, and appealer Ms. Wei Yuhuan were called to step out one by one. The guards took them to the ward head break room and abused them there. The room was chosen since it did not have any security cameras. After they had been shocked for 30 to 40 minutes, the guards pressured them to promise to end the strike and sing communist songs before meals. They refused. The guards punished them with another wave of abuse.

Ward head Liu Ziwei viciously beat university professor Ms. Feng Ruixue, and shocked her for a long time. Liu shocked her upper arms and shoulders, and beat her using an electric baton. She had many bruises on her legs and arms, and many purple blisters and black scars left by electric shocks covered her body. Liu shocked and beat her again in the afternoon.

Liu and guards abused Ms. Zhao Ye from Tangshan. They first used long electric batons to shock her for a long time, then changed to high voltage short electric batons, and beat her at the same time. They abused her in the morning and again in the afternoon. Ms. Zhao was severely injured. She had many purple bruises and black burn marks left by the electric shocks all over her body. She had swollen arms and shoulders, and could not bend her right fingers or use her right hand. She lost feeling in her right arm. She could not take care of herself in the following days. To cover their crimes, the guards put her into solitary confinement, and made her stand still in the great hall till early September.

Guard Lu Yaqin shocked Ms. Zhang Ni from Hao City. Her arms and mouth (both inside and outside) were swollen.

Lu shocked Ms. Liu Suran on her arms and neck. The burn marks lasted a long time.

Liu shocked appealer Ms. Wei Yuhuan for more than a half hour.

On the afternoon of August 15th as well as August 16th, guard Liu Ziwei once again abused Ms. Feng Ruixue and Ms. Zhao Ye. In addition, Liu shocked Ms. Lu Di of Shijiazhuang on her shoulders and Ms. Qi Junling from Cangzhou on her arms and neck. Ms. Qi was subsequently confined in the library by herself for a long time.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2011/9/15/246785.html