Various Torture Methods Used in Wuhan City Women's Forced Labour Camp

Wuhan Women's Forced Labour Camp was originally the Division 6 of the notorious Hewan Forced Labour Camp. It later moved locations and was combined with the Wuhan Forced Drug Rehabilitation Centre on September 26th, 2005.

The forced labour camp used many torture methods on female Falun Gong practitioners. They removed the clothes from female practitioners in public, shocked them with electric batons, forced them to stand for long periods of time, deprived them of sleep, hung them up by handcuffs for several days, deprived them of toilet use, refused to let them meet with their family members, force-administered unknown drugs, and applied force-feeding techniques, just to name a few.

The following instances illustrate a few examples of the horrors Falun Gong practitioners recently experienced in the Wuhan forced labour camp.

1. Shocked with Electric Batons

According to the Clearwisdom March 23rd, 2011 article, “Wuhan City Teacher Tortured at Hewan Labour Camp”, Ms. Zhu Huimin, a teacher at the Wuhan City First Business School, was detained at the Hewan Forced Labour Camp twice, where she was deprived of sleep, forced-fed, shocked with electric batons, and hung up by handcuffs. She recounts, “The officials temporarily transferred me and practitioner Duan Yuying to Division 6 in order to 'transform' [forcibly renounce Falun Gong] us. Division 6 Deputy Director Hu Fang (female, mid- 30's) directed the whole process of torturing us. A tall and strong guard named Liu Yan (female, 32) asked two inmates to hold me by my arms, with one on each side, while she shocked my arms with electric batons. Seeing that I did not scream, she shocked me with the electric batons for longer and longer intervals. Reddish burn scars soon formed on my arms, which started swelling up. Hu Fang also shocked Duan Yuying’s mouth with electric batons.”

Ms. Yang Weifang, 44, from the Qiaokou District in Wuhan, had a similar experience. As she refused to wear the prison uniform, Guard Wu Lizhen shocked her mouth, face, and neck with electric batons; she was shocked to the ground twice.

2. Suspended in the Air for Long Periods of Time

According to Ms. Zhu, “The guards hung us up by the handcuffs on our wrists, our toes barely touching the ground, for more than 10 days without any sleep. We both had severely swollen legs.” - (2)

3. Forced to Stand for Long Periods of Time Without Sleep

According to Ms. Zhu, “Liu Hui once forced me to stand for 15 days consecutively without sleep. Because I was so tired, I often closed my eyes and could not stand still. I had to grab a nearby bed or window frame to remain standing. Nevertheless, my head sometimes bumped against the wall or the metal frame, and I often fell down. The inmate in my cell told Liu Hui about my faltering, and Liu went even further with the torture by forcing me to stand still in an empty room. There was nothing to hold onto, so I must have fallen down at least 60 times. I was very dizzy, and I could hear the loud sound of my head hitting the floor.” - (2)

The inmates forced Ms. Yang to stand for five days without sleep under the order of guards Liu Hui, Hu Fang, Wu Lizhen, and Liu Yan.

According to the Clearwisdom October 1st, 2011 article, “The Persecution Suffered by Wang Yujie, a Young Woman from Hubei Province, before Her Death”, Ms. Wang Yujie from Wuhan City died at the age of 24. The article states, “In the labour camp, team head Hu Fang ordered drug offenders to torture Ms. Wang. She was forced to squat for six days and nights. She was continually harassed by drug offenders who deprived her of sleep.”

4. Force-feeding

According to Ms. Zhu, “Liu Hui ordered inmates to hold me down and force-feed me. As I struggled, the food that they were trying to force into me went all over the place. My nose and throat were injured by the rubber tubing, and this happened repeatedly. In addition, the doctor intentionally pulled and pushed on the tubing inside my nose, which caused even more bleeding. I once bled so much that they stopped half way through, afraid that they would kill me.” - (2)

5. Severe Beatings

Ms. Yang was constantly beaten and kicked. The inmates stretched her eyelids with a piece of cardboard, poured water over her head, stuffed her mouth, and tied her arms behind her back.

Ms. Wang was also severely beaten. “Because she remained steadfast in her belief, Hu Fang ordered drug offender Cao Wenli to break her left leg and hit her in the head. After that, Cao Wenli and another convict, Zhou Yan, handcuffed her, shocked her with an electric baton, beat her for 40 minutes, and pulled out a huge clump of her hair.” - (1)

6. Locked in an Oven Room for Long Periods of Time

Ms. Wang was also subjected to long-term baking. “Guard Hu Fang dragged Ms. Wang into the oven room in the hot summer and left her there for over 12 hours, from 6:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. She was drenched in sweat and nearly fainted from the heat. Her head felt as if it was going to explode. The excessive heat harmed her greatly.” - (1)

7. Family Visitation Prohibited

Many practitioners were denied family visitation because they practised Falun Gong. “She [Ms. Wang] was forced to do slave labour in the factory and was monitored 24 hours a day. She was also not allowed to talk to anyone and was not allowed to see her family even once.” - (1)

Ms. Xiao Yingxue, an employee of the Qiaokou District Administration for Industry and Commerce, was sentenced to one year of forced labour. The camp authorities denied her family's request to visit her with the excuse that she had refused to renounce Falun Gong. Her parents, in their 70's, didn't get to see their daughter for a year and were filled with deep sorrow.

According to the Clearwisdom January 11th, 2011 article, “Five Practitioners Detained in Wuhan City Women's Labour Camp (Photos)”, Ms. Li Juhua, 55, from Huangpi District in Wuhan, was arrested by agents from the Huangpi 610 Office (an organisation of special agents just for persecuting Falun Gong) on August 19th, 2009. She was sentenced to serve 18 months, and is currently detained in Division 6 of the Wuhan Women's Forced Labour Camp. Her family has been to visit her five times, and each time they have been denied the right to see her. Guard Hu Fang said, “No family visits are allowed for Li Juhua.”
8. Forced Administration/Injection of Unknown Drugs

Ms. Li was forced to take unknown drugs at the Wuhan Women's Forced Labour Camp. When she returned home, she exhibited symptoms like headache, numbness in one side of her body, blurred vision in both eyes, and general weakness.

Ms. Wang Jue, from the Xihu District, was sent to the Wuhan Women's Forced Labour Camp at the age of 18. During her detention, she was fed with unknown drugs. When she returned home, she suffered headaches, she would occasionally become irrational, and sometimes she could not control herself.

Ms. Yang was incarcerated at the Wuhan Women's Forced Labour Camp from March 2010 to March 2011. She was injected with unknown drugs while in the Camp. She was later taken to the Qiaokou District Brainwashing Centre on March 29th, 2011. She developed a large, painful lump in her stomach and experienced general weakness.

We are requesting help and attention from the international society. Please pay attention to and investigate what happens in the Wuhan Women's Forced Labour Camp. Please help to stop the persecution there.

Those responsible for the persecution at Wuhan City Women's Forced Labour Camp:

Wuhan City Women's Forced Labour Camp: +86-27-65681626
Yao Aijun, head of Division 6: +86-27-65681593 (Office)
Hu Fang: +86-27-65681766 (Office), +86-27-65681611 (Office)
References:
(1) The Persecution Suffered by Wang Yujie, a Young Woman from Hubei Province, before Her Death
(2) Wuhan City Teacher Tortured at Hewan Labour Camp (Photo)
(3) Five Practitioners Detained in Wuhan City Women's Labour Camp (Photos)

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2011/9/25/247138.html