Once Incarcerated for Ten Years, Retired Engineer Faces Trial for His Faith Again
(Minghui.org) A 65-year-old retired engineer in Shanghai has been scheduled to appear in Fengxian District Court for his faith in Falun Gong on July 6, 2020.
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is an ancient spiritual and meditation discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Mr. Zhang Qin
Mr. Zhang Qin was arrested on April 24, 2019, at a subway station in Shanghai. He suffered head injuries and had difficulty moving as a result of police brutality during the arrest. He filed a complaint against the police for the arbitrary arrest and detention, and his complaint has been accepted by the Supervisory Commission in the Xuhui District.
Mr. Zhang has been detained at Xuhui District Detention Center since his arrest. His widowed father in his 90s has been writing and calling the police to demand his release, but to no avail.
The Xuhui District Procuratorate approved his arrest on May 30, 2019, and indicted him on August 20, 2019.
Prior to his latest arrest, Mr. Zhang had been arrested five times for his faith and served two prison terms and one labor camp term for a total of ten years.
The police beat him, starved him, and deprived him of sleep for five days after he was arrested on September 29, 2001, for putting up stickers that said, “Falun Dafa is good.” He lost hearing in the left ear after being slapped in the face for more than 1,000 times.
When Mr. Zhang was serving his first four-year term at Tilanqiao Prison, the guards kept him in solitary confinement of only 35 square feet. He was ordered to sit on a wire roller of 3.5 inches in diameter (after the top was removed) from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. The guards ordered the inmates to beat and torture him three times a day, each time for half an hour. The torture lasted for two months.
Torture illustration: sitting on a wire roller with the top removed
Mr. Zhang was arrested again on October 7, 2005, while on his way to visit his aunt. He was given one year of forced labor after 30 days of detention. He was tied to a bed and force-fed during his year-long term as he held a hunger strike to protest the persecution. To this day, he hasn't completely regained his ability to walk due to injuries sustained from being tied up.
Mr. Zhang was arrested one more time on June 5, 2009, and sentenced to five years by Xuhui District Court. The guards ordered four inmates to monitor him around the clock. He was not allowed to take showers and was given limited time to do laundry. The guards kept his arms tied behind his back for four years. He still feels numbness in his left arm several years later.
Related reports:
Shanghai Resident Arrested Again After 10-Year Incarceration for Not Renouncing His Faith
Mr. Zhang Qin Soon to Be Released in Hopes of No Further Extension of Imprisonment
Shanghai Tilanqiao Prison Intensifies Persecution of Engineer Zhang Qin