Mr. Li Lankui Arrested in Zhengding County, Hebei Province; Villagers Stand Up to Police

Name: Li Lankui
Gender: Male
Age: Unknown
Address: Donganfeng Village, Xipingle Township, Zhengding County, Hebei Province
Occupation: Waste collector
Date of Most Recent Arrest: June 7th, 2012
Most Recent Place of Detention: Shijiazhuang City Brainwashing Centre
City: Shijiazhuang
Province: Hebei
Persecution Suffered: Extortion, detention

Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Li Lankui from Donganfeng Village of Xipingle Township, Zhengding County, Hebei Province, makes a living collecting waste. On June 1st, at around 6 o'clock in the morning, more than 20 police officers from the 610 Office (an organisation of special agents just for persecuting Falun Gong) arrived in four police cars to break into Mr. Li's home. Since Mr. Li was not home at the time, his family was forced to lead the police to look for him. They ran into Mr. Li on the way and the police tried to force him to sign paperwork on the spot. Mr. Li told them sternly, “Falun Gong is good!”

Just as the police officers were trying to force Mr. Li into the police car, his mother, who is almost in her 80s, arrived breathless. She grabbed her son and would not let go. She cried and questioned the police officers, “How come you guys didn't come when my son was paralyzed in bed and couldn't work? When we could not afford any treatment for him and he had such a bad temper and was cursing all the time, how come you guys didn't come? How come you guys didn't come when my daughter-in-law had repeated seizures due to epilepsy, curled up in a ball, and couldn't breathe? And when three of my young grandchildren and I, an elderly woman, often didn't have anything to eat, how come you didn't come then? Just when my son and my daughter-in-law have regained their health through practising Falun Gong, without spending even one penny, and our lives have just gotten better, you guys come.”

The neighbours couldn't just stand aside. Instead, they surrounded the police officers and tried to reason with them, “Mr. Li is not stealing from or robbing anybody. He is very fair and kind in doing business. Why do you guys keep on harassing such a good person?” The police said, “Xi Jinping is coming to our area. We will let Ms. Li come back once Xi is gone.” [Editor's Note: Xi Jinping is a high-ranking government official and next in line to be head of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).] The neighbours said, “We don't believe what you say. Last time, when somebody was throwing rocks at the railroad, you guys arrested Falun Gong practitioners and lied to us saying that you'd release them in one day. In the end, they were only released when the real offender was captured. Luckily the person who committed the crime was found, otherwise the practitioner might have not come back at all.”

More and more villagers were gathering and they quarrelled with the police, “You guys ignore corruption among the officials and only bully the ordinary people. You wouldn't even let somebody alone who collects waste and come for such a good person every day. This family has six members—three of them have illnesses and they have three kids to take care of. When they weren't doing well for themselves, nobody ever came to visit. Now that their lives have just gotten a little bit better, you guys come and try to bully them and cause trouble for them.”

With the help of the villagers, the police officers' attempt to arrest Mr. Li failed. Yet the officials from the 610 Office (an organisation of special agents just for persecuting Falun Gong) were not going to give up. They followed and monitored Mr. Li continuously and also sent many plainclothes officers to patrol his neighbourhood. During this time, just because Mr. Li talked to the owner of the waste site for a little while when he turned in the collected waste, the owner was harassed and threatened by the police. The owner of the waste site was made to pay 1,500 yuan¹ in cash and robbed of a few thousand yuan worth of goods. The police questioned the owner closely about what Mr. Li had said to him. They also threatened the villagers and said openly that they would arrest at least 10 people from the village.

On June 7th, several police officers arrested Mr. Li early in the morning when nobody was around. They stealthily took him to the Zhengding County Detention Centre. The family was not notified, which is a breach of the law. After the family members asked around, they went to the Xileping Police Station and demanded that Mr. Li be released. It took the police authorities a while but they finally gave Mr. Li's family an unofficial letter that mentioned a 500-yuan fine and two weeks in detention. After seven days, the police asked for the letter back and changed Mr. Li's term to one year and three months. The family didn't sign the agreement. Mr. Li's elderly mother cries every day and the entire family is very worried about Mr. Li's safety. They have taken some clothes to the Zhengding County Detention Centre for Mr. Li. The guards were very rude and unreasonable. They gave Mr. Li's family a hard time and ordered that they pay 750 yuan for his living expenses first.

Now, Mr. Li has been transferred and is being detained at Shijiazhuang City Brainwashing Centre. With her son being detained, Mr. Li's nearly 80-year-old mother has lost her financial support.

In the past 13 years, the CCP has been persecuting Falun Gong practitioners who follow the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. In carrying out the persecution, the CCP has gone against the common aspirations of the people. The voice of righteous people in China has become increasingly loud. More and more people have recognized the true nature of the CCP and extended a helping hand to the persecuted Falun Gong practitioners. The police and the 610 Office in Zhengding County used Xi Jinping and his foreign guests' upcoming visit as an excuse to wantonly harass and arrest law-abiding citizens and have caused strong dissatisfaction among the people in the county and nearby areas.

The local people have spontaneously protested against the CCP and supported the persecuted practitioners by releasing a great number of balloons with truth-clarification messages, such as, “The world needs Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance!” A great change in history is upon us. We appreciate people of conscience being the voice of justice—your efforts will bring blessings.

Parties responsible for the persecution of Mr. Li Lankui:

Gao Guo, Director, Zhengding County 610 Office
Ma Yuefeng, Police Officer, Zhengding County 610 Office: +86-13933014989 (mobile)
Wu Shujin, Superintendent, Zhengding County Detention Centre: +86-311-88789162 (office)
Zhengding County Detention Centre: +86-311-88787160 (office), +86-311-88798739 (office), +86-311-88786320 (office)
Tang Hong, Public Prosecution Section Chief, Zhengding County Procuratorate: +86-311-88022026 (office), +86-13832165470 (mobile)
Zhao Zhenjing, Director, Hebei Province Zhengding County Xipingle Police Station: +86-13931993998 (mobile)
Liang Jianbin, Director, Hebei Province Legal Education and Training Centre (Brainwashing and Detention Centre): +86-311-86686716 (office), +86-13653312118 (mobile)
Yuan Shuqian, Person in charge of the brainwashing centre, Hebei Province Legal Education and Training Centre: +86-13903115399 (mobile)

Note

1. "Yuan" is the Chinese currency; 500 yuan is equal to the average monthly income of an urban worker in China.