(Clearwisdom.net)

In the middle of March 2003, authorities launched a new round of persecution against the Falun Gong practitioners jailed in the Fourth Section of Fanjiatai Prison in Shayang, Hubei Province. After banning all letters and visitors, the persecutors forced all of the practitioners to watch video programs defaming Falun Gong while isolated in a brainwashing class. Practitioner Xiong Jiwei was imprisoned separately because he refused to accept the brainwashing. When Xiong called out "Falun Dafa is good" instead of capitulating to the head of the jail so the prison official cursed him and instigated the inmates to beat him. In order to resist the persecution, Xiong went on a hunger strike beginning March 23 for an unconditional release. Every day the police tortured him by force-feeding him or administering injections against his will which caused him a lot of pain. Every time when he was force fed, he suffered severe heart palpitations. In the Fanjiatai jail hospital, the guards and the chief of staff restrained Xiong with handcuffs and shackles for ten days until his family members visited him. Currently he remains extremely weak after suffering this abuse.

The perpetrators: Xiao Tianbo (political instructor), Duan Yu (jail block chief), Xiong (section chief), Shi (hospital chief of staff), Shen (team leader)

4/30/03