Issued by Clearwisdom Net

NEWS - Mar. 16, 2007, Falun Dafa Information Center [ http://www.faluninfo.net/ ]

Cao was a native of Aksu city, located in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. She was arrested three times prior to her death, according to sources close to her in China, with two arrests taking place in Beijing for petitioning authorities regarding the suppression of Falun Gong and a third, and final, in the summer of 2006 after she wrote notes on PRC monetary currency enjoining people to leave the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). In all three instances her actions were met with extrajudicial sentencing to labor camps. During the third period of confinement, Cao was held variously in police custody in Aksu city and Allar city as well as, ultimately, the Women's Labor Camp of the Xinjiang Army Corps, located in Wujiaqu city (near Urumqi). Sources close to Cao report that police altogether have extorted nearly 300,000 yuan (roughly USD$39,000) from immediate family and relatives.

Efforts by family members seeking to hold Cao's killers accountable have met with resistance and denial at multiple levels of China's bureaucracy. Family have repeatedly petitioned the Wujiaqu City People's Congress, the relevant Procuratorate, the CCP Political and Judiciary Committee, the Labor Camp Bureau, as well as the Prison Bureau. Family were furthermore told by the director of the Wujiaqu City Procuratorate, a man surnamed Song, as well as by the Party head of the Women's Labor Camp, that the results of any investigations had nothing to do with the family, and could not be released to private individuals. To date no personnel or parties involved in Cao's murder have been reprimanded in any fashion, sources report.

The Information Center joins the family of Cao Aihua in calling for justice in her wrongful death at the hands of China's communist authorities, and is seeking the help of relevant international bodies and investigators.

"Cao's case speaks directly to the unbearable ordeals countless families go through when seeking justice from the Communist state for an imprisoned, tortured or murdered relative who practices Falun Gong," Information Center spokesperson Levi Browde said Thursday. "It is the Communist state, after all, that ordered the 'eradication' of Falun Gong, and often rewards those who adopt brutal means to carry it out. This is precisely why international pressure is so vital--it is often the only factor that will yield any results for families like Cao's."

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NEWS - Mar. 16, 2007
Falun Dafa Information Center, www.faluninfo.net

Background
Founded in 1999, the Falun Dafa Information Center is a New York-based organization that documents the rights violations of adherents of Falun Gong (or "Falun Dafa") taking place in the People's Republic of China. In July of 1999 China's autocratic Communist Party launched an unlawful campaign of arrests, violence, and propaganda with the intent of "eradicating" the apolitical practice; it is believed certain leaders feared the influence of the practice's 100 million adherents. The campaign has since grown in violence and scope, with millions having been detained or sent to forced labor camps. The Center has verified details of over 3,000 deaths and over 63,000 cases of torture in custody (reports / sources). Falun Gong is a traditional-style Buddhist "qigong" practice, with roots in the Chinese heritage of cultivating the mind/body for health and spiritual growth.

On January 11, 2007, Falun Gong practitioners Piao Guangxun, Li Hongyuan, and Shen Xueshan from Chaoyang River in Yanbian State, Jilin Province were arrested while clarifying the truth in a countryside village. They were brutally interrogated at the Longmen Police Station. Falun Gong practitioner Piao Guangxun could no longer move due to being beaten for an entire night. On January 12, an older female Falun Gong practitioner of Korean descent was arrested in a neighboring building. The police kicked and tortured this older woman until she lost consciousness and nearly died. One of her ribs and a toe were broken.

However, the police continued to grab her hair and hit her against the wall, which caused a large swelling on her head. When she needed to use the bathroom, the police shouted that she should drink her own urine if she was going to urinate and eat her stools if she defecated. The police also yelled, "To anyone who does not obey, we will have their organs harvested." They also shouted, "Why don't you die? Go to hell. We will say you died due to falling down the stairs yourself."

Among the police officers, two extremely cruel ones kicked and beat the older practitioner about the chest, face and feet.

The older practitioner became unconscious from being beaten. Her rib and one toe were broken (the toe in the circle

Bruises remaining from electric shocks was broken

This photo was taken several days after the practitioner was beaten

The older woman's hands were handcuffed to the heating pipes in the duty room. Soon, when the three policemen on duty fell asleep, the practitioner suddenly felt a strong electrical shock. She was injured badly and screamed, "Where is the electric current coming from?" The on-duty policemen were woken up by her scream and turned off the master switch. The practitioner's life was saved, but the strong electric shock caused 39 bruises on her body.

The policeman who caused the electric discharge was not in the on-duty room, but in another room. The wires of an electric plug were wound around the heating pipes, which caused the heating pipes to become an electrical conductor. The switch was hidden under the flooring near to the west wall of the duty room. Thus, a person who was tied to the heater could suddenly be shocked. However, the person would not know what was happening when the strong electrical current was felt, or who was responsible. The person who was handcuffed to the pipe could not escape and the result could be terrible.

Later, the older practitioner could not walk due to the torture. She urinated blood and was in critically ill condition. When it was getting dark, the police took her to the hospital, but used the excuse of sending her to a relative's house.

The perpetrators put her on a stretcher and pushed her into a room. The older lady rolled down from the stretcher and called out, "I am a Falun Gong practitioner. The police beat me and broke my rib. I don't need an examination. I don't need an injection." Later, four policemen carried her out and put her on the ground between two police vans which were 20-30 meters away from the hospital. One policeman said, "Quick, hold her down."

The practitioner opened her eyes and saw a policeman holding a medium-sized syringe in his hand. At once, she knew that her life was in danger. She said, "I know that the police give shots to Falun Gong practitioners to paralyze them. When practitioners are persecuted to death, their organs are harvested. I don't want the injection and I don't want to go to a relatives' home. If you do not hand me the syringe, I will not get into the car."

Finally, this older woman was able to escape under so many policemen's monitoring.

The officers from the 610 Office in Yanbian State and Longjing City committed this act of persecution. The Yanbian 610 Office was directly involved in this case. They utilized electrical currents to persecute and harm people's lives. Their abuse of people in detention has violated the Chinese Constitution. Anyone involved in this crime should be investigated immediately and charged according to the law. We also strongly demand the immediate disconnection of electrical wires from the heating pipes.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.org/mh/articles/2007/2/23/149560.html

Officials beat elementary school teacher until she becomes disfigured; doctor gives green light for more beatings

Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Lei Xin taught at the Taoxu Town Elementary School in Mengyin County, Shandong Province. She went to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong at the end of 1999 and was illegally arrested. The police took 1,500 yuan from her and sent her back to Mengyin County. She was held at the Mengyin Detention Center.

Another practitioner held in the same cell with Ms. Lei did the Falun Gong exercises on Chinese New Year's Eve in 2000. The guards handcuffed her to the window grates. Lei Xin protested, "She was only doing some exercises!" The guards then also handcuffed her to the window grate for the whole night.

Lei Xin also did the Falun Gong exercises in the detention center, so the guards put her in handcuffs and shackles. Other practitioners strongly protested this abuse, and the guards unlocked her handcuffs. But, she was forced to wear 80-lb shackles during her 27 days at the detention center. The guards extorted 10,000 yuan in cash from her family before they took her back to Taoxu Town in early March 2000. They further detained her for a little over 30 days.

Mo Guangli, Taoxu Town's former deputy head, and his subordinates arrested Ms. Lei at 8:00 p.m. on March 6, 2000, and took her to the front hall on the third floor of Taoxu Town's Finance Institute, where other practitioners lay injured and bleeding on the ground.

When Lei Xin first entered the hall, someone struck her with a heavy object with brutal force. She instantly collapsed on the ground and lost consciousness. Later on an official on duty said, "That was a terrible blow. She might not recover for six months."

After a while the officials pulled her up. Mo Guangli led eight people, including Mo Guangliang, Lai Xianlu, Ji Hailong, and Li Qiang. They took turns beating Ms. Lei and struck her to the ground several times. They forced her to remove her shoes and socks and stand barefoot on the floor before they continued the beating. When they grew tired they took a break and then went back to hitting her. Several hours of barbaric beatings left Lei Xin with a disfigured face and body. Her left eye was so swollen she could not see anything. Mo Guangli dragged her to the first floor and asked a doctor whether Lei Xin could tolerate more beating. Shockingly, the doctor said, "More beating is just fine!"

Ms. Lei was thus taken to the third floor, where the beatings continued. When the officials got tired they ordered her and other practitioners to stand barefoot against a wall with their arms raised above their heads. The officials then left. The person on duty told the practitioners to lie down and rest. One kind-hearted person on duty cried after she saw the practitioners' suffering and brought Lei Xin some water.

Lei Xin's husband arrived early in the morning on March 7, 2000, and wailed in anguish as soon as he saw his completely unrecognizable wife. It was the birthday of Lei Xin's mother-in-law, who was also detained for practicing Falun Gong. The old woman heard about how Lei Xin had been beaten and asked to see her. The officials flatly refused. Lei Xin's sister-in-law also went to see her and cried, too, as did Lei Xin's sister.

The officials extorted another 4,000 yuan from Lei Xin during this illegal detention. They also withheld several months' salary from both Lei Xin and her husband. They took a total of 24,000 yuan from the couple.

Practitioner Ms. Yin Shulan, 63 years old, lived in Wangjiamayu Village, Taoxu Town, Mengyin County. She suffered from rheumatoid arthritis and cluster headaches for several decades, but all of the illnesses disappeared after she started practicing Falun Gong. She was overjoyed.

Ms. Yin went to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong on August 13, 2001. She was arrested at Tiananmen Square. Official Zhang Jiman from Taoxu Town, Li Changxiang and Gong, police department deputy heads and Wang Zhaomin, and Mayu Village Party secretary took her from the Mengyin County Liaison Office in Beijing to the Mengyin County 610 Office. They also extorted 200 yuan from her. Zhang Yong and Liu Zhaoguo from the police department's 610 Office tortured her. Wang Wei beat her until she was black and blue; Xing Xianying gagged her with a towel and handcuffed her to an electricity pole.

The officials took Ms. Yin to a detention center on August 25, 2001. Police officer Sun Kehai often ordered his subordinates to verbally and physically assault her. They later extorted 350 yuan from her son.

Persecutor Lei Yancheng thought he could not get any money from Ms. Yin Shulan since she was retired. He colluded with Shi Yunduan and extorted money from her two sons, who didn't practice Falun Gong. Another town official, Zhang Jiman, extorted 600 yuan from Yin Shulan's sons. Several days later persecutor Zhang Jiman told her sons that he had something to discuss with them. He got them into a car and drove them to the town government, where he locked them up and threatened them. Her sons and daughter feared that their mother could not endure torture due to her age. They borrowed 10,000 yuan and gave it to the officials before the greedy officials let Yin Shulan go home.

During this time Zhang Jiman led Li Zhenguo, Wang Zhaoyang, Ma Xiujuan, Lai Xianlu and several others. They confiscated the contents of Yin Shulan's vegetable storage cabinet, closet, big and small desks, and a wall clock.

Hu Faming, Wang Zhaoyang and others took Ms. Yin to the town government in the spring of 2002 and didn't release her until they had extorted 60 yuan from her.

Lin Wei, head of Mengshan Police Department; Sun Wei, deputy head of the police department; and another officer ransacked Ms. Yin's home on February 17, 2004. They took 600 yuan and transported her to a small room at the Mengyin County 610 Office. They gave her only a small steamed bun for each meal and often forced her to stand and squat. They permitted her merely two hours of sleep a day. A female persecutor named Wang Xin once hit Yin Shulan with a floor mop until she bled and finally shoved the mop into Yin Shulan's mouth. Lei Yancheng, Fang Simin, Wang Xin, and others tortured Yin Shulan for 80 days and extorted 1,000 yuan from her family before they released her.

Practitioner Mr. Gong Weichun, 53 years old, lived in Weicheng Village. He once nearly died from severe illnesses that tormented him for more than a decade. His family was poverty-stricken because they spent all their money on medical treatment. Gong Weichun enjoyed great health and improved moral character after he practiced Falun Gong. He took good care of his parents and had a great relationship with his neighbors.

The Communist Party began persecuting Falun Gong on July 20, 1999. When Gong Weichun refused to hand over his Falun Gong books, a group of people including Li Taide, Zheng Qingzhao, Deng Xiangyang, and Li Qiang beat him and made him pay an illegal 200-yuan fine.

Local police officers Zhang Daoxin and Diao Chuanjun arrested Gong Weichun on February 21, 2000, because he signed a joint-statement letter to the United Nations that explained the facts about Falun Gong. They took photographs of him and extorted 220 yuan from him.

Town government official Lei Weichun arrested Mr. Gong and took him to the town government on February 21, 2000. Gong Weichun told the town's deputy head Lu Yixiang that his 80-year-old mother was running a high fever and suffering an asthma attack at home, that her life was in danger and he needed to go home to take her to the hospital. Lu Yixiang attempted to coerce Mr. Gong to curse Master Li, in addition to fining him 10,000 yuan. Gong Weichun firmly refused.

Fortunately, village Party secretary Yang Xinwen sent two people to take care of Mr. Gong's mother at night and arranged for a doctor to examine her. The neighbors took turns taking care of her during the day. Gong Weichun's two brothers, who lived in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, rushed to their mother's bedside. They saw that Gong Weichun could be arrested at any time, so they had no choice but to take their sickly mother to the cold northern Inner Mongolia. The combination of severe illness and shock proved too much for the frail woman. She passed away three months later in Inner Mongolia.

Gong Weichun was tortured for 15 days at the town government compound. A group of officials including Mo Guangli, Li Taide, Li Qiang, Lu Yixiang, Qin Chengzhi, and Lai Xianlu each took a wooden stick and prepared to beat him on March 7, 2000. They wrapped Gong his head in a piece of cloth and viciously struck him with the sticks. The cycle of beatings followed by a short break went on for three rounds. Gong Weichun lost consciousness and dried blood glued his shirt to his flesh. Li Taide whipped his face with a bamboo stick. Bo Guangli and two other people poured cold water on his head before throwing him outside. He regained consciousness, and his whole body was throbbing in pain. The officials also extorted 4,000 yuan from him.

Officials Bao Xitang and Deng Xiangyang savagely beat Mr. Gong again in the village government office in December 2000. They also kicked him in the head and stomach.

Official Li Qiang led some people and took Gong Weichun to the town government again in early February 2001. After torturing him for two weeks, one evening Mo Guangli, Shi Yunduan Lu Hu, Lai Xianlu, Mo Guangliang and a few others took him to a small room. They turned off the light and hit him with eight sticks at once; the beating continued until the sticks broke and the officials were exhausted. Mr. Gong nearly died from this beating.

Police officers Zhang Daoxin, Li Changxiang, Diao Chuanjun and others pried the door to his home open on April 28, 2001. They confiscated Master Li's lecture cassette tapes and an enlarger that belonged to Gong Weichun's younger brother. Town officials Shi Yunduan, Lu Yixiang, Li Qiang, Zhang Chengwu, Li Zhaofa, Wang Zhaoyang and others took 500 kg [1,100 lbs] of wheat, 25 kg [55 lbs] of peanut oil, two boxes of cotton, bike(s), and hand carts. Mr. Gong Weichun left home to avoid arrest and further persecution, but since that day, officials from the police department and the 610 Office have tried daily to arrest him. After he left home, the police confiscated his land, vegetable garden and peach orchard.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.org/mh/articles/2007/3/1/149916.html

Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Zhao Lanyi lives in Zhuangke Village, Yangzhuang Town, Yishui County, Shandong Province. Once when he went to distribute truth-clarification materials to Checun Village, Mazhan Town, he was targeted and beaten by four men who were deceived by the lies of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

As they were kicking Mr. Zhao, a fifth person said, "Falun Gong practitioners are good people. They don't do bad things, but [only] good things." No matter how the individual tried to persuade the four to stop beating Mr. Zhao, they didn't listen, but instead dragged him away.

They then took off Mr. Zhao's belt and used it to whip him all over his body. One man especially hit Mr. Zhao's ribs and chest. Under such cruel torture, Mr. Zhao still continued to clarify the truth to them. However, they refused to listen. Their hands were injured from beating Mr. Zhao, and they tried to frame him by accusing him of biting them. Mr. Zhao replied, "Our teacher teaches me to not fight back when punched or insulted. We are doing the right thing and are good people. No matter how brutal you are, I will not fight back." They continued to beat Mr. Zhao for over an hour. As a result, they became exhausted and could not even lift their arms.

That evening, the Yishui Town police came and detained Mr. Zhao in a basement. They didn't allow him to use the restroom. The following day, he was sent to the Yishui Detention Center. There, a prison guard tried to kick Mr. Zhao, but ended up hurting himself instead. He then ordered criminal inmates to take off Mr. Zhao's clothes and beat both of his legs until they turned black. His head, two ribs and chest were also injured.

In the evening, to keep Mr. Zhao from sleeping, the prison guards ordered the inmates to smoke cigarettes and blow the smoke at him, and constantly shake him. During the day, they dragged Mr. Zhao and forced him to sit for the whole day. On December 18 and 19, the guards sent him to the center hospital for a check-up. They intended to continue torturing him during the examination, but failed.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.org/mh/articles/2007/3/7/150299.html