Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau is Responsible for the Untimely Deaths of 64 Falun Gong Practitioners

Since July 1999, the month when the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) began its unprecedented persecution of Falun Gong, Heilongjiang Province has been the one that most blindly obeyed the CCP's dictates. Heilongjiang Province became known as the worst place for persecution compared to the rest of the nation. According to statistics published on the Minghui website, 455 practitioners died as a direct result of the persecution in Heilongjiang Province; the highest number of any province in China. Sixty-four were killed, or died as a direct result of torture, while in prison. The Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau is responsible for all these deaths and will be held accountable in the future.

Of the 64 practitioners who died, 20 died in Heilongjiang Women's Prison, 13 in Mudanjiang Prison, 11 in Daqing Prison, 9 in Tailai Prison, 3 in Jiamusi Prison, 2 in Harbin Prison, 2 in Beian Prison, and 1 in Luobei Prison. In early March of this year, 3 practitioners died in Jiamusi Prison within just two weeks.

It was reported that many other practitioners who have been tortured were near death. Prison guards didn't administer life saving treatment and when near death they demanded that their families take them home, so they could die there. The prison authorities refused to take any responsibility. There are many disabled from torture, but the number is unknown. As practitioners were held in prisons for a long time and under strict monitoring, it is difficult to obtain information outside the prison walls. It takes years to be able to recount some persecution facts. Those perpetrating the atrocities and torture appear to get off scot-free and are promoted by the CCP authorities.

Established Chinese laws no longer apply as all prisons were given a free hand in the persecution of Falun Gong. Prison guards may cause death, injury and disability without being held legally accountable for their misdeeds.

On February 26th, 2011, Mr. Qin Yueming died from torture and mistreatment in Jiamusi Prison. The prison staff could not provide his family a reasonable explanation. Therefore, his family went to the Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau, which has authority over the Jiamusi Prison. Alas, Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau also covered up the truth, and told his family that Mr. Qin died from natural causes. As a matter of fact, in mid January 2011, Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau issued the order of forcible transformation of practitioners to every prison under their jurisdiction and closely monitored the transformation process. Jiamusi Prison staff closely followed the CCP directives in its effort to have practitioners renounce Falun Gong.

On February 16th, Jiamusi Prison convened so-called “holding a fortified position and consolidate workshops” to brainwash practitioners. On February 21st, Jiamusi Prison set up a “Harsh Management Team.” Within two weeks, practitioners Qin Yueming, Yu Yungang and Liu Chuanjiang died from torture. Faced with three murders, and phone calls demanding they stop persecuting practitioners from inside and outside of China, the Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau, held a meeting with every prison district supervisor and vice supervisor in charge of education and transformation, claiming that practitioners were suicidal in Jiamusi Prison.

Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau not only manipulated the facts concerning its part in the Qin Yueming's murder, but continuously issued orders to every prison during the past year, demanding inhuman physical and mental torture of practitioners. There were many murders after such a directive, which again the Bureau covered up.

Below are several examples, which are just the tip of the iceberg.

At the beginning of 2004, the Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau issued a written order to Tailai Prison, demanding a 95% transformation [forcibly renounce Falun Gong] rate of practitioners. To achieve the quota, guards at Tailai Prison tortured practitioners for ten months. Tailai Prison held meetings with the district supervisors and sub-district supervisors in July, suggesting a complete transformation of those that refused to renounce Falun Gong and refused to work.

If the entire district was transformed, the reward was 1,000 yuan¹ for the guards and the cadres were rewarded 2,000 yuan. On the other hand, if transformation was not achieved, guards were threatened with demotion, reduction of wage, and other punishments.

Every district was given free hand to the torture method or instrument they use when trying to transform practitioners. First, District No. 8 ordered ten torture instruments in the shape of a question mark. Guards fixed practitioner's hands to the two sides to the top of a horizontal bar, and the feet to the lower horizontal bar. Then, they tied them to the vertical bar with a chain, so the body was free standing. It was one of the most brutal torture methods ever conceived.

The district No. 8 supervisor Zhou Shuzhen ordered that all guards must beat practitioners or be beaten. Most guards in this district were new graduates from the police academy. They blindly obeyed Zhou. Every district wanted to outdo the other in torturing practitioners. Practitioners were kept in handcuffs or foot shackles. Practitioners' ankles were broken and they could no longer walk, so they were taken to work in vehicles. After work, practitioners were tortured with different kinds of torture equipment, deprived of sleep and doused with cold water after falling asleep.

Practitioners Mr. Pan Hongdong from the Sub-district 2 of District No. 9 and Mr. Xu Linshan from the Sub-district 3 of District No. 4 were tortured until they died.

In 2004, practitioner Mr. Cheng Peiming was brutally tortured in Daqing Prison until it was exposed on Internet, on December 4th, 2004. The Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau investigation section and the Heilongjiang Province 610 Office (an organisation of special agents just for persecuting Falun Gong) sent staff to Daqing Prison, which conducted a three-day long investigation. They did not investigate the atrocities, but searched for the person that disclosed the news, who put it on the website and who took the photo. They also said that guards sympathetic towards Falun Gong would have to face dire consequences.

On April 5th, 2004, Harbin Prison police tortured Mr. Wang Dayuan to death. To stop an investigation by international human rights organizations, the Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau transferred over one hundred practitioners from Harbin Prison to Mudanjiang Prison, Tailai Prison and Daqing Prison on July 1st, 2004. Only several practitioners that had accepted “transformation” remained behind. Thirty-three male practitioners were transferred to Daqing Prison, and 28 practitioners were taken to Tailai Prison.

When Assistant Commissioner Chen Shuan of Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau inspected Daqing Prison, Wang Yingjie pulled practitioner Mr. Fu Wenchang from his bed to the ground, with head facing down, and tortured him in front of over ten cadres, including Chen Shuan and cadres of Daqing Prison. Everyone watched and did nothing to stop the atrocity.

In 2007, the Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau issued an order that all practitioners in prison must be “transformed.” Heilongjiang Province Women's Prison ordered criminals to brainwash practitioners. Eight or four criminals were assigned per practitioner. They used every torture method they could think off, such as deprivation of sleep, insult, slander, sitting on a small stool and mental torture.

Ms. Zhu Fuju from Hailin City who was held at District No. 9 Heilongjiang Province Women's Prison was tortured with the Big Hang Up daily, because she refused to renounce her belief of "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance." Her hands were cuffed and she was hung on top of the bunker bed, with toes just touching the ground. She was locked in the cell and monitored by criminals. Soon after, Ms. Zhu Fuju's hands were disabled.

On March 29th, 2010, Daqing Prison convened a meeting about persecuting practitioners. They agreed to a transformation rate of 70% those held in the prison, and an 85% transformation rate of those close to being released. The quota was: 5 people from District No. 1 & 2, five people from Sick People District, four from District No.3, five from District No.4, five from District No.7 and so on. They faxed the meeting minutes to Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau and asked that they be rewarded for their effort.

The above is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau persecuting practitioners. Since the beginning of Falun Gong's suppression in China, on July 20th, 1999, Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau has actively cooperated with the CCP's policies on persecuting Falun Gong. They issued persecutory policies and transformation targets annually. They caused the death of 64 practitioners in Heilongjiang Province prisons.

In the future, the lawless officials of the Heilongjiang Province Prison Administrative Bureau will have to face responsibility for their deeds. They have committed the crimes of genocide, anti-humanity and torture, so they will not escape from just in the future.

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.ca/mh/articles/2011/10/9/247669.html