15 Falun Gong Practitioners Dead in China from Police Brutality, Torture or Forced Labor
NEW YORK (FDI) — On Thursday, January 9, 2003, four drunken police officers from Caidian District Police Substation came to Qunying Liu’s home and tried to take her to the police substation. Qunying refused to go because her 82-year old father needed a ride home from the hospital.
The police demanded that Qunying come to the police substation the following day.
Qunying’s colleagues tried to persuade her not to go, but they say Qunying knew she had done nothing wrong. “What do I have to be afraid of if I’ve done nothing wrong?” she told them.
At 8am the next morning, Qunying reported to the Law Management Section of the Caidian District Police Substation as requested.
Three hours later she was dead.
“6-10 Office” Orders Implemented: “Report All Deaths as Suicide” (About)
According to the police, Qunying committed suicide right in front of them by jumping from a 7th floor window.
According to eyewitnesses, a person did fall from the 7th floor that Friday morning. The witnesses say, however, that the body was motionless and silent as it fell. The witnesses saw two people watching from the seventh floor, who made no move to check on the body. They report that it was winter and the tiny lower windows on the 7th floor were all closed. The larger upper windows were open, and Qunying would have needed a ladder to reach them and climb out — an unlikely scenario in the presence of the police officers.
The medical examiner from Caidian Police Substation claimed that Qunying died immediately. The autopsy report stated that her chest was covered with black and blue bruises and she had severe internal bleeding.
Observers indicate that the marks on her chest were obviously from beating – not from hitting the ground. One eyewitness concurred, saying her body fell as if she was already unconsciousness.
On January 12th, 2003, the Municipal Procuratorate forced Qunying’s family members to sign the autopsy report. The report did not list the time of death, the cause of death, or the time or steps taken to rescue her. Caidian District judiciary branches and the legislative committee of Caidian District demanded that Qunying’s whole family admit that she committed suicide.
According to friends and neighbors, Qunying was an honest and kind-hearted woman. She was also a determined Falun Gong practitioner who understood that the principles of Falun Gong strictly prohibit suicide. She had an 82-year-old father who needed her care, and she also had a teenage child who needed looking after.
Relatives or colleagues say Qunying was murdered.
Qunying Liu is one of 566 confirmed deaths from abuse by authorities in China.
The following details of further deaths have recently been received by the Falun Dafa Information Center — each of these people died (either directly or indirectly) as a result of torture and mistreatment at the hands of Chinese police because they refused to give up their practice of Falun Gong.
January 19th, 2003: Construction worker dies after six months of torture
Jinshan Liu, male, 56, a construction worker from Shuangyashan City, had been to Beijing a number of times to appeal for Falun Gong since the persecution of Falun Gong in China began in July, 1999. In April 2002, neighborhood policemen asked him to submit his photograph for their archive of Falun Gong practitioners. He refused and was detained in the Shuangyashan City Detention Center. After 15 days on hunger strike, he was released. Weeks later, he was kidnapped by policemen when he was coming home from work. After approximately six months of torture in the detention center, police released Jinshan believing he would die soon and not wanting to shoulder the responsibility. He was brought home on January 14th, 2003. Detention center officials laid him on the bed and reportedly asked “why didn’t you just give in so that we could have released you long ago?” Unable to speak, Jinshan did not answer and died five days later at 7am on January 19th, 2003.
January 12th, 2003: Man tortured and reported dead in Wanjia Hospital in Harbin City
Guanyun Yu, male, 61, from Harbin City, was kidnapped by security officers at Harbin Railway Train Station in July 2002 while he was distributing Falun Gong flyers. He was later sent to Changlinzi Labor Camp. On January 12th, 2003 it was revealed that he had died in the Wanjia Hospital in Harbin City as a result of torture suffered at the camp. One of Guanyun’s sons, Zhenyi Yu (also known as Yu Dai) was tortured to death on May 13, 2002. The police now are searching for his second son Zhenxiong Yu, who has been forced to go into hiding.
January 7th, 2003: Retired teacher dies in hospital while serving her second three year sentence
Cuizhen Zhang, female, 66, a retired teacher from Benxi City Teacher’s College died from persecution in Benxi City. Cuizhen was sentenced to 3 years in prison after she went to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong in October 1999. She suffered considerable torture and when she was finally released after serving the full term, friends say she was unrecognisable. After her release she was sent to the hospital for emergency treatment. A week later, the police went to the hospital and illegally sent her to Masanjia Labor Camp for an additional 3 years labor “re-education.” She didn’t pass the physical examination at the labor camp, so the police let her carry out the sentence outside the prison, under virtual house arrest. She was continually harassed by people trying to persuade her to renounce her beliefs in Falun Gong. Her condition deteriorated so much that she was sent back to the hospital and died on January 7th, 2003, at 5am.
December 17, 2002: Senior Engineer sentenced to 4 years in jail, dies suddenly after appealing her sentence
Qirong Guo, female, 59 was from Emei City, Sichun Province. In November 2002, Qirong was sentenced to 4 years in prison for refusing to renounce Falun Gong. Qirong appealed to Leshan Mediate Court, in accordance with her constitutional rights. On December 17, she was suddenly moved to Chuanxi Female Prison, Longquan Yi, Chengdu City. The next morning she was dead. The prison officials claimed she died from a cerebral hemorrhage. There has been no independent verification or investigation. No further details have been released.
November 28, 2002: Woman kidnapped by police — dies 4 days later
Lianping Ye, female, 38, from Xi-an District, Mudanjiang City was kidnapped by local police on November 24th, 2002 in a suburban area of Daqing City. The police sent her back to Mudianjiang City on November 28, 2002. She died the same day and was immediately cremated before her husband could see her body.
Perpetrators: Mudanjiang City Public Security Bureau State Security Brigade: 0453-6282628 Mudanjiang City “6-10 Office:” 0453-6525610
October 2002, Mother of two dead after refusing to write “guarantee” statement
Fenfang Yang, female, in her 30s, was a mother of two children, from Zhouqu County, Gannanzhou, Gansu Province. Fenfang was tortured to death by police in Zhouqu County Public Security Bureau right before the 16th Party Congress in October 2002 because she refused to write a “guarantee” statement to no longer practice Falun Gong. Her husband, also a Falun Gong practitioner, is currently imprisoned in the Ping-an-tai Labor Camp.
October 2002, Three people beaten to death by police from Huxian Country, Shanxi Province
Three practitioners of Falun Gong from Xi-an City have been reported beaten to death during the month of October 2002, by policemen from Huxian County of Shanxi Province. Dawei Wang (male) was taken by the police from his home in early October. He was beaten to death 5 days later. Soon after, another female Falun Gong practitioner (in her 60s) and a male Falun Gong practitioner (in his 30s) were also beaten to death by Huxian policemen.
August 2002, Man dies after prolonged torture
Jianping Tang, male, in his 20s, died after prolonged torture in a detention center where he was held for approximately one year. During this time, his work unit fired him, and his wife was forced to divorce him, separating him from their 3-year-old son. Jianping was later transferred to the Xinhua Labor Camp in Mianyang City, Sichuan Province. He was released for medical treatment because of his extremely poor health. He died in August, 2002.
May 2002: Man dies while doing forced labor
According to preliminary reports, Mr. Qi died after doing heavy labor in the Shili Detention Center in Jiujiang City, Jianxi Province. Officials at the detention center, however, say Mr. Qi died of “kidney disease” at home. No details have been made available.
2002: Two men kidnapped, one beaten to death
Youcheng Wang, male, 40, from Xiangfang District, Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province was kidnapped by armed police on April 23, 2002, along with another practitioner, Chunfeng Guan. Both of them were secretly held at the detention center of the Harbin City Ship Transportation Bureau. Youcheng was tortured to death while at the detention center. As of January 20, his family has not been officially notified of his death, and the details remain unknown.
Chunfeng Guan is still being detained in Changlinzi Labor Camp in Harbin City. He was beaten so badly that he couldn’t even bend his legs.
2002: Man tortured until mentally disordered and then dies
Dexium Zhao, male, was a retired cadre of the Xinyang City postal and telecommunications office. He was brutally tortured by Xinyang City Public Security Bureau simply because of his practice of Falun Gong. He was tortured until he became mentally disordered and passed away sometime in 2002. His family wouldn’t disclose any detail information for fear of the local police.
November 2000, Man dies after torture
Yongde Sun, male, 40, was an employee of a tobacco company. He used to suffer from liver disease and ascites, but he quickly recovered and regained his health after he became a Falun Gong practitioner. In November 2000 he was detained and tortured because he refused to give up his belief in Falun Gong. The police eventually released him because he was in such poor health from the torture. After he returned home, his ascites recurred and he died several months later.
