Zhao Xindong Mentally Ill After Persecution and Missing for Almost Three Years

Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Zhao Xindong, from Tonghua, Jilin Province, was born in 1974. He lived on Tuanjie Street in the Dongchang District of Tonghua.

Mr. Zhao started practising Falun Gong in 1998. In 2000, he went to Beijing to appeal to the government for the right to practise Falun Gong. He was arrested and taken to a labour camp. After being persecuted for a year in Tuanhe Labour Camp, he became mentally ill and couldn't take care of himself. In June 2009, he went missing.

When Mr. Zhao was released from the labour camp in 2001, he was given a train ticket to return home. At that time, he was already mentally disoriented. Mr. Zhao was mentioned in a Minghui article “Four Dafa Practitioners Suffer Mental Breakdowns Due to Severe Torture at Tuanhe Labor Camp, Beijing”, dated July 2nd, 2002 (http://en.minghui.org/emh/articles/2002/7/13/24059.html#.T63cW0qfL3Q). He continued to suffer from mental illness after he returned home. He was unable to clearly describe the cruel persecution that he'd experienced. According to his fragmented description, he was persecuted for three months by the so-called “Action Team” because he refused to give up his faith in Falun Gong. During those three months, he was tied to a bed and force-fed through a tube.

Even after he was released from the labour camp, he was continually persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Police station personnel often came to his house and harassed him. He was taken to the police station and beaten by officers. After he returned home, he was in a state of constant fear and anxiety. His family took him to the Siping Psychiatric Hospital, and another hospital in Chengdu for treatment.

On the morning of June 26th, 2009, Mr. Zhao left home and has been missing since that time; there is no information available regarding his whereabouts or condition.