Burning a Practitioner's Back and Then Rubbing Salt Into the Wounds: Brutality in Sanshui Labor Camp, Guangdong Province

(Clearwisdom.net)

In mid 2002, the Guangdong Sanshui Labor Camp Third Section, Fifth Unit sent many policemen to the northern part of the country to learn torture methods and share experiences on how to torture Falun Gong practitioners. After a period of preparation, those policemen started their cruel acts on December 3^rd. On one occasion a practitioner was tortured to death there. The police sent two or three practitioners from the third section to the second section to "help and teach" them. That euphemism described a premeditated plot. There were nine rooms on the second floor of the building. Four or five of the rooms were torture rooms. One was for police officers and one was for the "helpers" that the police selected from among the criminals in the camp. On the first floor, some of the rooms were living quarters for policemen and some were used to house practitioners who gave in because they could not withstand the torture. The officials vigorously blocked information on how they tormented practitioners.

The first group of practitioners consisted of Wang Bin, Feng Dijian, and Liu Fangfei. When they arrived, policemen and their helpers (they call them "personnel on duty") were waiting. The helpers covered practitioners' heads with cloth and dragged them up to the second floor torture rooms. Inside each room there were two 1-meter tall, half-meter wide by 0.6-meter long, 60-70 kilogram (150 lb.) bags loaded with blankets. The bags were bound with rope. The helpers took off practitioners' shoes and placed them between the two bags. The practitioner's left and right hands were cuffed separately onto the ropes of each bag, putting the practitioner in a squatting position. While squatting, the practitioner had to maintain a straight back. The practitioner was forced into this position 24 hours a day, and this continued for several days.

The "helpers" took turns watching over practitioners 24 hours a day. Sometimes, there were four criminals surrounding each practitioner. The police placed two helpers in the front and two in the back. The practitioners were not allowed to fall asleep. If the practitioner's legs were tired and he needed to switch his legs, the police asked helpers to step on the practitioner's foot or use tooth picks to dig into the practitioner's nails. The policemen also directed the two helpers on each side to pull the bags in opposite directions. The practitioner's hands were cuffed on the ropes tied to the bags, and the practitioner's arms were pulled apart with people pulling hard on each end. Practitioner Wang Zhufeng from Maoming City strongly kept his belief and did not give in. Because of a long period of this inhuman treatment, his shoulder bone was cracked and his muscles were separated from the shoulder bones. Other parts of his body were also severely damaged. Later he was sent to Foshan Hospital for an operation. He is still in the recovery unit of Sanshui. He has been in the hospital for over six months.

Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Lin Fengchi strongly held to his belief and did not give in even after suffering such torture for 3 days and 3 nights. They continued torturing him for a few more days. After they injured him, he was sent to the hospital for treatment. After he recovered, they continued their brutality. They poured hot water onto his back to burn him and then rubbed the wounds with salt. After torturing him until he passed out, they sent him to the hospital. Last May, they brought him back and continued their torture. He was supposedly assigned to a labor camp for one month, but today he is still there, facing torture and inhuman treatment.

Mr. Li Yuandong from Maoming City was not allowed to sleep because he did not give in to the torture. When he fell asleep, the police directed their helpers to kick him in the face and stomp on his feet. Mr. Li's face was red and badly swollen. The helpers said that he would fall asleep if they did not watch him for just a few seconds. If they did not catch him, he would drop off to sleep. Mr. Li was supposed to be released last January, but when April arrived he was still being tortured.

Mr. Chen Weiming from Zhanjiang had a fever of 40^oC (104^oF) while he was being tortured. They did not allow him to sleep. When he fell asleep, the police directed their helpers to kick him in the face and stomp on his feet. His feet were consequently swollen and infected. When he was finally sent to the hospital, his feet were already horribly injured to the point that the bones were visible. He was again sent to be tortured in April. His feet had not recovered, and again badly swollen, and he was not able to walk.

A practitioner named Mr. Wang Bin had his wrists cuffed and was hung from a doorframe. Mr. Chen Jingping was tortured to the point of losing his sight. He can only read a book from 10 cm (3-4 inches) away now. Lin Qinrong's hands were numb and he was not able to move for months because handcuffs were used to torture him. Mr. Chen Jingping and Mr. Chen Jinke were forced to squat for a long period of time. They suffered injuries from this torture and their legs did not recover for months. There were many practitioners who were unable to walk because of the injuries from the torture they received. If they needed to go to the bathroom, the helpers would drag them there. Some of the practitioners' hands were cuffed with the ropes on the bags, and 2 or 3 ropes had broken because of the pulling action. The handcuffs dug into the practitioner's hands and caused bleeding and infections. Some were cut so severely that bones were showing.

Police who tortured practitioners declared: "It is the people above who want us to do this. If you people die, we are not responsible according to the law." Sanshui Labor Camp Education Director Ye Xiujia said, "We are not doing anything illegal and you all can sue." In December, the most ruthless person who tortured practitioners was Lu Jinhu. This person had a wicked heart and was very rough. He used to hit Wang Bin and say: "I don't need to treat you as a human."

During the torture in December some practitioners did not fare well. They were not able to endure the pain and gave in. After they were sent back to the third section and fifth unit, everyone realized that they should not surrender to the evil and so they made solemn declarations. There were many who slowly understood what they had done and turned back. The police dispersed those practitioners into different units. Rooms 206 through 209 were especially used to torture practitioners.

On March 24^th, 2003, the practitioners were returned for more torment. The police and helpers did not allow the practitioners to sleep. They used many ways and methods to torture the practitioners. Some practitioners were forced to squat for several days and nights. Some were forced to stand for seven days and nights straight. If one fell asleep, the police directed their helpers to pull their hair, flick their ears, and twist their shoulders to make them spin. Practitioners were deprived of sleep for a very long time. If their eyes shut, they would fall asleep instantly, and they would fall flat on the ground. Some practitioners were escorted by two helpers on each side and were dragged along. Some practitioners who fell asleep were thrown to the ground. "Helpers" administered strong sedatives to practitioners, and then electrically shocked their feet.

Practitioners continued to uphold their beliefs and suffered this way for more than 20 days. The police then sent them to a confinement room. The confinement room was cushioned with thick padding and once a person arrived there, they were not treated like human beings. A practitioner would be stripped of all of his clothes except underpants. Their hands and feet were tied up. Some practitioners were surrounded by eight or nine police and who used electrified batons on them twice a day - once in the morning and once in the afternoon. Sometimes, no one really knew exactly how many batons were used. The practitioners were not allowed to fall asleep in the confinement room. If they discovered a practitioner asleep, the next day they would double the treatment with electric batons. Under such conditions, if one did not give up in seven days, they would add seven more days of this treatment. If the practitioners still did not give in, they would send them back to the unit to start a new round of torture. If one conceded, the evil would say it was one's free choice and that they had not forced anyone to give up the practice.

Many practitioners remain in the confinement room facing similar torture and torment.

The organizations and individuals involved in this persecution include:
Unit leader: Zhang Qingmei
Assistant unit leader: Qiu Jianwen
Major Officers: Zhu Qi, Guo Baosi, Wen Zhiguang, Zeng Guanhua, Zhang Wujun, and several newly transferred officers.

Third Section and Fifth Unit evil officials involved:
Unit leader: Zhang Qingmei
Assistant unit leader: Qiu Jianwen, Chen Ruixiong (Already transfer to Guangzhou "Legal Institution")
Main supervisors: Fan Qingping, Zhu Qi, Guo Baosi
Officers: Zeng Guanhua, Zeng Huaping, Lu Jinhu, He Xiaodong, Wen Zhiguang, Zhang Wujun, Lin Guotao, Zhou, Huang and several newly transferred officers.

Director: Zhang Xiang
Assistant Director (primary person behind of persecution): Ma Liming (already transferred to another place)

Chen Zhiqiang, Advisor
Wang Jialiang, former Director of the Education Unit.
Ye Xiujia, current Director of the Education Unit
Luo Yutang, Area Director who is one the primary person involved with persecution of Falun Gong practitioners.
Third Section and Fifth Unit Telephone: 86-757-7318028üC86-757-7310600 (office)

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