FDI :Eight More Wrongful Deaths of Falun Gong Practitioners in Police Custody
NEW YORK, July 2, 2002 (Falun Dafa Information Center) - The number of deaths
of Falun Gong practitioners in police custody from torture and abuse has doubled
in the last year, according to statistics gathered and verified by the Falun
Dafa Information Center. Correlated to Jiang's order to "kill [Falun Gong
practitioners] without pardon," the escalation of the three-year persecution of
Falun Gong in China has brought the total of verified deaths to an alarming 429.
Well-connected sources in China put that number much higher, even in the
thousands.
Recent Reports of Eight Falun Gong Practitioners Dead at the Hands of
Chinese Police:
Police Kidnap a Woman's Husband, Then Burglarize her House (June 16th, 2002) Mrs. Geng Cuifang was from Lanzhou City; her husband Su Lanzhou practiced
Falun Gong together, but one day her husband was kidnapped at about 6:00am on
June 13th by policemen who had been lying in wait outside his house for the
entire night, according to sources. In many areas, under orders from Jiang's
regime, police are given quotas for arrests of Falun Gong practitioners in their
region.
Later that day, several police officers from the Lanzhou Railroad Public
Security Bureau arrived at Mrs. Geng's home to search it. Many victims, when
taken by police for practicing Falun Gong, suffer long torture and eventual
death at the hands of police in labor camps throughout China. Mrs. Geng would
not let the officers enter, and when they began to force their way through the
door, she had no choice but to attempt to flee from her window, and suffered a
fall.
The police, instead of attempting to assist the badly injured Mrs. Geng,
instead took the house keys from her body and ransacked her home, stealing
books, jewelry, and money. They left Mrs. Geng's body outside in the sun until
4:00pm of that same day. After Mrs. Geng passed away from her injuries, the
police hurriedly cremated her in a process that lasted less than seven minutes,
but still forced her family to pay 6,000 Yuan (the average monthly salary for an
urban worker is about 500 Yuan) for the "cremation fee."
Police Torture Man to Death, Then Guard His Home to Deter Mourners (June 1st,
2002)
On March 11th, 2002, police from Xiaochi Town in Hebei Province, where Mr.
Gui Xunhua lived, approached the Falun Gong practitioner and his wife and
attempted to force him into their car. He peacefully resisted, so they resorted
to force, beating him and his wife in broad daylight and in front of many
witnesses. Eventually, they managed to bring him to the Jiujiang Public Security
Bureau in Jiangxi Province for interrogation and detention. The police there
beat and tortured him until his death on June 1st, 2002.
Severe Torture Causes Psychological Damage, Death to Falun Gong Practitioner
(July, 2001)
Zhang Xiuling practiced Falun Gong in Handan City, Hebei Province. After the
persecution of Falun Gong began in China, she traveled to Beijing multiple times
to peacefully appeal for an end to the oppression. But she was often detained
and tortured as a result. The abuses she received were so severe that in the end
they caused psychological damage. She eventually died from the torture in July
of 2001.
Force-feeding Causes Death of Anhui Falun Gong Practitioner (June 7th, 2002) Mr. Rui Xiaolin lived in Anqing City of Anhui Province, and was a successful
man with higher education and a job as an engineer for the Anqing City
Waterpower Bureau. He also traveled to Beijing on many occasions to appeal for
an end to the ban on Falun Gong. According to sources in China, the third time
Mr. Rui was illegally detained in the Nanhu Labor Camp.
On the same day of his arrest, Rui Xiaolin began a hunger strike to protest
his wrongful arrest. The labor camp staff used brutal methods in an attempt to
force-feed Rui Xiaolin, and as a result of this and other tortures, the 39-year
old engineer died on June 7th, 2002.
Many cases of death due to improperly administered forced-feeding have been
documented. Forced-feeding in several cases has even been used as a means of
torture. Administered by untrained prison wardens or even other prisoners,
high-concentration saline solution, urine, or even more deadly substances are
used to fill victims' stomachs in an effort to get them to renounce their
beliefs.
Police Beat 52-year-old Woman with Electric Batons (May 20th, 2002)
Another Falun Gong practitioner from Hebei Province, Mrs. Song Cuiling, was a
retired worker from the Zhangjiakou City Coal Engineering Factory. In the same
manner as her fellow practitioners described above, Mrs. Song traveled to
Beijing six times to appeal for Falun Gong. On one of those occasions she was
detained for a month and fined 10,000 Yuan (500 Yuan is the average monthly
salary for an urban worker).
On May 4th, 2002, police arrested Mrs. Song in Beijing and beat her with
electric batons to the point that she became incontinent. She was taken outdoors
everyday from 6:00am to be exposed to high winds and scorching heat. She went on
a hunger strike to protest her detention and mistreatment, but became too weak
and went into a coma on the ninth day of her hunger strike. The director of the
detention center where she was held even claimed that she was feigning the coma
and attempted to force-feed her with a large tube.
Mrs. Song's health continued to deteriorate, however, and on May 20th, she
stopped breathing. The detention center doctor called it a "fake death" and
ignored her. Later that day Mrs. Song was taken to a ward where she died about
1:30pm, according to sources.
Local "610 Office" Tortures Practitioner to Death (June 9th, 2002)
Ms. Li Guojun was a Falun Gong practitioner from Weifang City in Shandong
Province, an area known for its cases of extreme brutality in the persecution of
Falun Gong in China. She disappeared on April 16th, 2002. Her husband, Mr. Li,
was later contacted by his township secretary, who told Li that Li Guojun was in
a "610 Office" brainwashing class.
The "610 Office" is a nationwide agency specifically created to persecute and
eliminate Falun Gong, with absolute power over each level of administration in
the Party and all other political and judiciary systems. Mr. Li was told that he
would need to pay 2,000 Yuan to obtain her release (the average monthly salary
for an urban worker is 500 Yuan).
Mr. Li did as he was told, but instead of being able to see his wife, was
told that she had "committed suicide," and that her body was going to be
cremated. Li Guojun's family, upon seeing her body, noticed that it was covered
with cuts and bruises. During Mrs. Li's hurried funeral ceremony, mourners were
ordered "not to cry" and were followed by three police vans. Mrs. Li leaves
behind a 12-year old son.
Police Force Retired Government Official to Jump from Window (May 23rd, 2002) Despite her 57 years of age, Ms. Wu Dabi was a very healthy woman, having
cured her chronic bronchitis and arthritis through practicing Falun Gong. The
police from Suining City did not understand this, however, and on May 23rd came
to her home to take her to a detention center. After tricking her into letting
them in, they told Wu Dabi that she had to go with them to a forced labor camp.
Despite the protests from Mrs. Wu, her family and neighbors, the police insisted
on taking her, and forced her to jump through her window. Her family immediately
took her to a local hospital.
On the morning of May 24th, after talking with the Suining City policeman for
an extended period of time, the doctor taking care of Wu Dabi claimed that her
condition was "normal." By 2:30pm she was taken to an operating room, however,
and at 5:00pm Wu's family was told that she was dying. The doctor refused to
explain why she was dying, and only allowed her family to see Mrs. Wu in the
morgue at 7:00pm after she had passed away.
Background
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a practice of meditation and
exercises with teachings based on the universal principle of
"Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance." It is a practice that was taught in private
for thousands of years before being made public in 1992 by Mr. Li Hongzhi. Falun
Gong has roots in traditional Chinese culture, but it is distinct and separate
from other practices such as the religions of Buddhism and Taoism. Since its
introduction in 1992, it quickly spread by word of mouth throughout China, and
is now practiced in over 50 countries.
With government estimates of as many as 100 million practicing Falun Gong,
China's President Jiang outlawed the peaceful practice in July 1999, fearful of
anything touching the hearts and minds of more citizens than the Party. Unable
to crush the spirit of millions who had experienced improved health and positive
life changes from Falun Gong, Jiang's regime has intensified its propaganda
campaign to turn public opinion against the practice while quietly imprisoning,
torturing and even murdering those who practice it.
The Falun Dafa Information Center has verified details of over 429 deaths
since the persecution of Falun Gong in China began in 1999. Government officials
inside China, however, report that the actual death toll is well over 1,600.
Over 100,000 have been detained, with more than 20,000 being sentenced to forced
labor camps without trial.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT THE FALUN DAFA INFORMATION CENTER-
Contacts: Gail Rachlin 917-501-4441, Erping Zhang 646-533-6147, Adam Montanaro
917-405-4507, or Feng Yuan 646-523-5676. Email:
faluninfoctr@nycmail.com, Website:
http://www.faluninfo.net/
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