(Clearwisdom.net) Daiwangcheng Township is a small town in Wei County, Hebei Province. There are 30 villages altogether. 28 of these villages are home to Dafa practitioners. The practitioners' cultivation has brought healthy minds and bodies to both the practitioners and their families. All along, the families have become harmonious and the villagers have become goodwilled and kindhearted.
However, since July 20, 1999, the local government has cooperated with higher ranking officials to undertake a "power-over-the-law" type of persecution, similar to what was done during the Great Cultural Revolution. The local government's actions caused this ancient, small town to become immersed in an atmosphere of terror.
In February 2000, since all other channels of appeal had been blocked, six Dafa practitioners went to Tiananmen Square to appeal for Dafa. After police officers forcibly brought them back, they were detained in Beizhong. At the same time, the township government officials also detained over 40 local Dafa practitioners who refused to give up their belief in "Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance." While police officers were arresting the practitioners, an elderly woman practitioner fainted by the side of the car. Only then was she not arrested. The local government authorities converted a middle school into a prison camp where many kindhearted people were detained. For nearly a month, the local government officials detained more than 400 practitioners here and at various village commission offices.
While many Dafa practitioners were imprisoned in Beizhong, the deputy party committee secretary, Zhao Chunfu, exclaimed, "Whoever still practices, beat him with your mightiest force. I will take responsibility for any accidents!" Therefore, the local police station chief, Shao Jie, cruel police officers Zhang Jianqiang, Gao Hai, Fan Jinhai and several other hoodlums severely beat Dafa practitioners Li Xi, Xiao Tang, Xiao Yongfei, Li Jinjun, Liu Guiming, Gao Yuping and Li Runmei. The hoodlums attacked the practitioners with their fists. They used "ear fanning," wooden clubs, fire tongs, whips made from tree branches and brutal kicks. The hoodlums removed the practitioners' pants and lashed them with leather belts. They shocked the practitioners with 2 or 3 electric batons at the same time. If a practitioner fainted, the hoodlums would pour cold water on the practitioner's bodies to wake them up. Some practitioners were beaten so severely that their flesh and blood were mixed to a pulp. Their skin was seriously burnt by the electric batons. Other Dafa practitioners were also brutally beaten and shocked to different degrees with electric batons. The hoodlums called this torture "Helping and educating." During this one-month illegal imprisonment, the practitioners were only given 1 Jin [about 1 lb] of corn flour meal daily. Yet, before the practitioners were released, they each had to pay 300 Yuan for "food expenses" [the average monthly income in rural China is about 200 Yuan]. Moreover, the perpetrators imposed large, illegal "fines" on practitioners. Six practitioners were fined 5,000 Yuan each, another six were fined 4,000 Yuan each, two practitioners were fined 1,000 Yuan, and the rest were fined 2,000 Yuan. Two practitioners from out of town who were temporarily residing there were fined 6,000 Yuan plus a 4,000 Yuan "deposit" for each. Two practitioners were detained for eight more months because they could not afford to pay the large fines. The other practitioners in each village also had to pay 200 to 300 Yuan "fines." The total amount of fines collected was over 200,000 Yuan. On top of that, the hoodlums did not issue any receipts for these "fines."
The worst part was that each of the over 400 practitioners had to find two guarantors. If later anyone would go to Beijing to appeal, the guarantors would be fined 2,000 to 5,000 Yuan each. People are not well off economically in this area. Most families had to borrow from others, even if it was only 200 Yuan. One practitioner's husband borrowed 2,000 Yuan to bail out his wife. He was ill and still had to go out of town to work. Later he passed away from overwork. Four former practitioners who were prone to all kinds of sicknesses before practicing became healthy after practicing Falun Gong. They were pressured to give up practicing. They later passed away, one after another. Their families' newly regained hopes were dashed.
During this month-long illegal detention, a couple of practitioners requested to go home, to preside over their daughter's wedding. Their request was refused. The mother anxiously promised, "I use my own head as a guarantee that there would not be any problem." However, the township party committee secretary, Duan Bin, said, "Several of your heads combined are not worth my position."
Since July 20, 1999, every once in a while, some practitioners have been tortured and fined.
In October, 1999, Li Jinjun, Xiao Tang and Li Xi were illegally detained by police for
"disturbing the social order" because they went to the county capital to exchange some experiences and thoughts with their fellow practitioners. They were detained for 14 days. In the meantime, 12 practitioners from the local area were also detained at the township government for 12 days. Finally, each person was "fined" 500 Yuan (a total of 7,500 Yuan).
In July 2000, nine Dafa practitioners were arrested. Each person was fined 1,000 to 1,500 Yuan, totaling more than 10,000 Yuan.
At the end of the year 2000, two Dafa practitioners went to Beijing to peacefully appeal for Dafa. They were brought back, brutally beaten and imprisoned for over a month. Each person was fined 5,000 Yuan. Moreover these two practitioners' four guarantors were also fined 2,000 Yuan each. The total amount of money extorted was 18,000 Yuan.
In August of 2001, two Dafa practitioners were fined 5,000 Yuan each for putting up Dafa truth-clarifying posters. In the meantime, the township government assumed local practitioner Mr. Liu Guiming and his wife Ms. Cai Jinzhi had something to do with the case. Zheng Rongxin, chairman of the township's Political and Judiciary Committee, along with Zhang Jianqiang and Gao Hai from the local police station led seven or eight people to break into the couple's home, handcuffed Mr. Liu Guiming and took him away without any warrant. To avoid further persecution, Mr. Liu's wife, Ms. Cai Jinzhi, escaped away from the monitoring of village officials and left home. She has been homeless for more than seven months now. Mr. Liu Guiming was released the next day for lack of evidence. He was also forced to leave home to avoid further persecution. In January of 2002, Mr. Liu was arrested again at a fellow practitioner's home. He was brutally beaten and has been detained to suffer further mistreatment in a detention center since that time.
Also in August of 2001, Zheng Rongxin, chairman of the township's Political and Judiciary Committee, led a gang of people to forcibly throw practitioner Ms. Shi Chunlian into a car and take her away while she was doing her fieldwork. Ms. Shi was sent to the brainwashing class held by the county government and brutally abused there. That same day, another practitioner Li Runmei, was also arbitrarily lured to the brainwashing class. To protest the illegal persecution, they went on a hunger strike. They were released after 15 days and 28 days, respectively, of being on a hunger strike. Additionally, they were forced to pay "tuition" for the class of 100 Yuan per day, per person. During the hunger strike, the villains brutally force-fed them. The thugs even added hot pepper and alcohol to the force-feeding mixture, which caused great suffering for them.
Mr. Li Jinjun and his wife, Ms. Cao Meiyun, are two practitioners who temporarily lived in this township. Ms. Cao Meiyun went to Beijing to appeal for Dafa in October of 2001. She was brutally abused in Beijing for more than a month, then sent back to Wei County and tortured at the detention center for two and a half months. Following that, prior to the Spring Festival, ruffians sent her to Gaoyang Forced Labor Camp in Baoding City, Hebei Province. Mr. Li Jinjun was forced to leave home for more than five months to avoid further persecution. To make matters worse, their child, not having her parents to take care of her, was expelled from school under instructions from township mayor Li Fuchun. The 12 year-old girl not only lost her parents, but also lost her connections to the school, her teachers and classmates. Unable to catch Mr. Li Jinjun, the township government authorities persecuted his relatives and arrested his brother-in-law and brother-in-law's father, who was the guarantor for Cao Meiyun. They demanded 4,000 Yuan to release them. Zheng Rongxin, chairman of the township's Political and Judiciary Committee beat the guarantor. Since he refused to pay the exorbitant "fine," the township government officials dispatched people to take away his three-wheeler and a 25-inch color TV.
Prior to the Spring Festival of 2002, township supervisor Li Fuchun caught practitioner Ms. Zhang Gui'e after work while she was hanging Dafa banners. She was detained for 15 days and had 1,000 Yuan extorted from her. Her son was beaten for not cooperating with the thugs when her home was searched.
Around the same time, villains broke into the home of Dafa practitioners Xiao Tang and Xiao Yongfei, father and son, "fining" them 2,000 Yuan for having Dafa books in their home.
Kindhearted people! Please think about it. Who are the one's confiscating wealth here? Who is levying so-called "fines" upon illegal arrests? Who is actually breaking up happy families? Who is truly disturbing the social order and constantly harassing people during these "sensitive" days? Who is attempting to control people's minds? Kindhearted people around the country are only able to listen to the deceitful propaganda of their government over the airwaves. Who deprives millions of people the right to know the truth? Who deprives millions of Dafa practitioners from telling others about the benefits they have gained from Dafa? Kind, peaceful citizens are severely persecuted, abused, and tortured, simply because they believe in "Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance" and practice exercises to stay healthy. Heavenly principles will not allow such irrational persecution!
We hope all kind-hearted people around the world will help us to stop the persecution against Dafa practitioners in China and to save all suffering people.
Responsible parties involved in the persecution:
Duan Bin, Township Party Committee Chairman
Li Fuchun, Township Mayor
Zheng Rongxin, Chairman of Township Political and Judiciary Committee
Zhao Chunfu, Vice Chairman of Township Political and Judiciary Committee
Shao Jie, Director of the local police station
Zhang Jianqiang, Gao Hai, Fan Jinhai, officers of the local police station
Wu Chun, Tian Jianquan, Fan Kai, Li Junfeng, villains.
In addition, two officials were sent to each of the 28 villages of the township who are also involved in the persecution.
Phone numbers:
Daiwangcheng Township Government Office: 313-720003
Local Police Station: 313-720054
Township Communist Party Committee Chairman Office: 313-7200596
Township Supervisor Office: 313-7200626