Ms. Song Caihong Dies After Severe Beating in Detention

Name: Song Caihong
Gender: Female
Age: 41
Address: Zhaojiawan area of Xingcheng City, Liaoning Province
Occupation: Medical Ph.D student in Jilin University
Date of Death: January 15th, 2012
Date of Most Recent Arrest: December 30th, 2011
Most Recent Place of Detention: Huludao Detention Centre
City: Xingcheng
Province: Liaoning
Persecution Suffered: Electric shock, forced labour, beatings, imprisonment, solitary confinement, torture, physical restraint, term extension, detention, denial of medical treatment, and denial of toilet use.
Key Persecutors: Zhao Liyang, Zhang Junfeng

Ms. Song Caihong, 41, was a beautiful, vivacious young woman. She was arrested for giving people Falun Gong calendars. Zhang Junfeng, director of the Huludao City Detention Centre, beat Ms. Song severely over a period of approximately ten days in detention because she refused to tell them her name, but only cried out, “Falun Gong is good!”

Past Persecution Experience

Ms. Song Caihong was a resident of the Zhaojiawan area of Xingcheng City. After she began practising Falun Gong, she became a better person and followed the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. Right after the persecution of Falun Gong started in July 1999, Ms. Song went to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong. She was arrested and sentenced to three years of forced labour, and later detained at Masanjia Forced Labour Camp.

Ms. Song was forced to clean the toilets after she was admitted, and the guards frequently tried to force her to renounce Falun Gong. She was once beaten up in her cell because she refused to renounce Falun Gong. When Ms. Song's term expired in July 2002, the authorities extended it for another five years. She was then sent to Dabei Prison in Shenyang City.

In prison, Song Caihong was often confined in a solitary cell, sometimes continuously for more than two months. On one occasion she was confined in a solitary cell over the Chinese New Year. The cell was very cold in winter and the windows were kept open, but she was not allowed to wear a warm coat. Her hands and feet were cuffed to rings on the ground, to completely immobilise her. She was only allowed to use the toilet once each day. When she occasionally cried out, “Falun Gong is good!” the prison guards shocked her mouth with electric batons. After eight years of detention, all of her teeth had become loose.

Dies after Severe Beating

On December 30th, 2011, Ms. Song was reported to the authorities while she was distributing Falun Gong calendars to people. She was arrested and sent to the Diaoyutai Police Station. Zhao Liyang, the deputy director of the police station, was in charge of her case. Since Ms. Song refused to tell the police her name, the police beat her, and sent her to the Huludao Detention Centre [Note: Due to the Chinese Communist Party's policy of implication, Falun Gong practitioners often refuse to give their names in order to protect their family members, friends and coworkers].

Ms. Cai had refused to give her name, but at 8:00 a.m. on December 31st, 2011, cried out, “Falun Gong is good” to protest the detention. Deputy Director Zhang Junfeng and four guards pushed her to the ground and beat her for a long time. After she returned to her cell, she began to vomit blood. She was unable to eat after the beating.

On January 6th, 2012, Ms. Song occasionally lost consciousness. Zhang Junfeng was afraid that Ms. Song would die in detention and ordered her to be sent to the Huludao Central Hospital. The doctor required her to be admitted to the hospital but the police refused, and she was sent back to the detention centre.

On January 8th, 2012, Ms. Song's condition worsened and she was often losing consciousness. The detention centre officials informed Ms. Song' family and she was sent directly to the hospital. The severe beating had caused damage to her internal organs, and she was unable to eat for a long time. She was diagnosed with acute uraemia. She was transferred to a different hospital, but it was too late for medical help. At about 7:00 a.m. on January 15th, Ms. Song passed away.

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2012/1/31/252568.html