Cao Dong Arrested Again in Beijing, Less than One Year after His Release from Prison

Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Zhang Yisu returned home from work at approximately 8 p.m. on June 8th, 2012. The moment she unlocked her door, seven to eight police officers moved in quickly and broke into her home. The officials were actually looking for Mr. Cao Dong, who was staying temporarily at her home. Mr. Cao graduated from the Beijing Foreign Language College. He was previously arrested and sentenced to five years in prison after he met with the vice president of the European Parliament and informed him about the brutal persecution suffered by him and his wife, along with other local practitioners.

Among this group of officers, the director from Andingmen Police Station pointed to Mr. Cao and asked, “Who is he? Why is he staying here?” “Hand over the materials we're looking for, or we'll begin searching.” Mr. Cao and Ms. Zhang refused to cooperate, so the officials began their search without a warrant. They confiscated Mr. Cao's carry-on luggage, which contained Falun Gong books and personal documents, including his late wife Yang Xiaojing's personal documents, and a computer.

After the officers raided the house, they took Mr. Cao and Ms. Zhang and her mother to the Andingmen Police Station, where they were held in separate rooms. They interrogated Ms. Zhang's mother with repetitive questions, “Do you know who Cao Dong is? How dare you let him stay?” She replied, “I only know that he is a friend; he's looking for rental properties and hasn't found a place yet. Once he finds a place, he'll move out.” Ms. Zhang's mother was released at 3 a.m. the next morning. The whereabouts of Mr. Cao and Ms. Zhang are unknown, and authorities gave out no notifications.

The day prior to the raid, someone put a sticky note on Ms. Zhang's door that indicated the police had been following and monitoring Mr. Cao for some time.

Six years ago, European Parliament Vice President Edward McMillan-Scott went to Beijing and investigated China's human rights situation. Mr. Cao Dong and practitioner Niu Jinping bravely kept an appointment with the vice president, despite threats from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Mr. Cao discussed the persecution suffered by his wife, Ms. Yang Xiaojing, when she was held in a forced labour camp, and the shocking dark secret of the hideous crimes of organ harvesting from living Falun Gong practitioners. Following the two-hour meeting, Mr. Cao was arrested by plainclothes agents from the Domestic Security Bureau second division. He was held in Beijing at an undisclosed location for three months, and then sentenced to five years in prison in Gansu Province. His wife died on October 1st, 2009, after long-term labour camp persecution, harassment, and living in extreme fear.

Mr. Cao was released from Tianshui Prison in Gansu on September 28th, 2011. He then travelled to Beijing to bury his wife. He was organizing his wife's belongings while looking for a job and a place to rent. Ms. Zhang let him stay in her home temporarily until he located his own place.

Following Mr. Cao's release, he wanted to write a letter to Mr. McMillan-Scott, whom he'd met six years ago, and who had appealed for him, cared about him, and tried to rescue him. He wanted to express his gratitude. However, the CCP viewed Mr. Cao as a special target, so when they discovered that he'd left Gansu Province, they began searching for him in order to keep him under strict surveillance. Less than a year after his release, and barely recovering physically and mentally from his ordeal, he was arrested again.

We demand that the CCP release Cao Dong and Zhang Yisu immediately. We appeal to people with justice in their hearts from all walks of life to pay close attention to their wellbeing and help secure their immediate rescue.