Brutal Torture Methods Used on Falun Dafa Practitioners at the Changlinzi Forced Labour Camp (Illustrations)

Changlinzi Forced Labour Camp is located in the outskirts of Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province. It was specially designated to persecute male Falun Gong practitioners from the Harbin area who were illegally sentenced to forced labour. In order to force Falun Gong practitioners to give up their beliefs in Falun Dafa, the authorities use all their power and resources to torture Falun Gong practitioners. Their methods are as follows:

1. Public Criticism and Denunciation Meetings

The forced labour camp authorities continuously organize public meetings with different intensity levels. They mobilize all criminals, including policemen and those employed in the camp, to slander Falun Gong and read materials that defame Falun Gong. Sometimes some 100 criminals and policemen from the division criticize and denounce Falun Gong during the same meeting, as well as insult and swear at Falun Gong practitioners

2. Intensified Brainwashing

The forced labour camp organizes the practitioners to watch video-tapes from morning till evening that slander Falun Gong. They also force practitioners to listen to propaganda broadcasts to defame Falun Gong. If Falun Gong practitioners show any resistance to this brainwashing, they are beaten or restricted to solitary confinement immediately.

3. Brutal "Personal Cangues" (1)

The Forced Labour Camp authorities arranged two "personal cangues" for each Falun Gong practitioner to supervise and limit their behaviour and movements. They forbid the practitioners to communicate with each other, practise the five sets of exercises, recite Teacher's new articles, have meals or sleep. Practitioners are even not allowed the privacy to use the toilet. Falun Gong practitioners are regularly insulted, beaten up and sworn at by the personal cangues. If a criminal were successful in having a Falun Gong practitioner renounce Falun Gong, this criminal will get his sentenced drastically reduced. As a result some criminals use all types of cruel methods to put pressure on Falun Gong practitioners to renounce their belief. However, if accidents happen to Falun Gong practitioners and they become injured then the "personal cangues" become the scapegoats.

4. The Cruellest Iron Cage (Small Cell) (See Illustration 2)

This iron cage at the Changlinzi Forced Labour Camp is about 1.5 meters tall, 70 centimeters in width and about 1 meter in length. A person is unable to stand up straight. He must bend his back and lower his head. The police guards handcuff the practitioner's hands to the top of the iron cage; therefore the practitioner can neither stand straight up nor squat down. One can only do a half squat. It does not take long for the muscles to be stressed and sore in this excruciatingly position. The practitioner is handcuffed and held in this position 24 hours a day. Some practitioners were handcuffed inside the cage for 15 successive days. Some have been handcuffed inside the iron cage many times. In winter it was biting cold in this cage. The police guards would remove the practitioners' shoes and socks and force them to stand there barefoot. Some practitioners would stand on inch thick ice. As a result their feet were frozen and suffered from frostbite. This torture device is very cruel and the one who has been handcuffed and hung inside the cage will suffer pain for a long time afterwards. Many practitioners became disoriented and in a stupor after suffering in this cage for extended periods. Several dozen practitioners had been handcuffed inside this cage more than once.

5. Assigning a Group of People to Bring Practitioners to the Point of Exhaustion

The Forced Labour Camp assigns this task to various sections and divisions. They then interrogate Falun Gong practitioners from morning till evening, or at midnight.

6. Injecting Unknown Drugs

Ju Yajun, just over 30-years-old, was very healthy. He was carried into the clinic for forced feeding because he went on a hunger strike to protest his illegal sentence. During the forced feeding they injected unknown drugs. After he came back he was in a state of stupor and could not speak proper sentences. He repeatedly pointed to his arms and said, "Needle injection, needle injection..." To evade responsibility, the Forced Labour Camp sent him home. He died not long after he was sent back home.

7. Barbaric Forced Feeding

The Forced Labour Camp carried out force feedings of practitioners who went on a hunger strike to protest their illegal sentenceof forced labour. More often than not the rubber tube had blood on it. The forced feeding injured the nose, esophagus and stomach of quite a number of practitioners. Two criminals' gripped Mr. Kong Xiaohai's arms during force-feeding. He spat up blood after the forced feeding and suffered from great pain. He died two days later, but the Forced Labour Camp falsely claimed that Mr. Kong died of a heart attack.

8. Corporal Punishment

The Forced Labour Camp has become quite adept in using physical punishment over extended periods of time. They continue to persecute practitioners who refuse to renounce their beliefs. For example, they force the practitioners to bend over with two legs apart, head bowing to the ground and two arms held in an upward position from behind. The practitioners were forced to remain like this for four to five hours. As a result they would have sore backs and legs. Mr. Yuan Qingjiang suffered from such physical punishment for an extended amount of time. He was forced to stand against the wall in this posture from early morning until 12 midnight.

9. Hanging on the Prison Bars or Bed Frames

The Forced Labour Camp hung a large number of Falun Gong practitioners onto prison bars or bed frames for 24 hours straight. They were not allowed to rest. The victims become extremely fatigued and suffer from heart failure. Mr. Zhang Tao and Mr. Li Hongbin began a hunger strike to protest after they were hung on the prison bars. The guards then rushed them to Wanjia Hospital for emergency treatment, but both of them died.

Many practitioners were deprived of sleep for six to seven days. They became mentally confused and became extremely fatigued. A lot of practitioners were hung like this for half a month. Afterwards they were in a stupor.

10. Additional Different Punishment Methods.

In 2002, Changlinzi Forced Labour Camp established the No. 5 Division -- special administrative class. Falun Gong practitioners were sent to this class in groups for further cruel persecution. The Forced Labour Camp also set up a special education class to persecute Falun Gong practitioners. During these classes the police guards used brutal methods to torture Falun Gong practitioners. Please see some of the cruel methods outlined below:

1) Forcing practitioners to squat on the ground with their hands on their back. Then, the criminals or the police would use a bench to hit the practitioners' back and head. If the practitioners showed the slightest defiance they would suffer from even worse torture methods (See Illustration 3). Mr. Sun Qiang and many others refused to obey the depraved people, so they were dragged into the special education classroom where they suffered further inhuman tortures. Yan Jiguo, Tan Chengjun, Yu Guang and other practitioners were locked into the iron cage, where eight criminals beat them up. Then were locked to the torture chairs to suffer from more cruel tortures.

2) Pushing the practitioner to the ground, while pulling his two arms backwards from his back, pushing them forward until they touch the ground and then row the arms as if rowing a boat. This torture causes extreme pain. (See Illustration 8)

Putting a foot on the buttocks of the practitioner and then shoulder one of his legs upward with force. This torture causes a lot of pain in the lower body parts. (See Illustration 1)

3) Inserting hard objects between the practitioner's fingers and then squeezing the fingertips with force or punching the fingertips with fists. As a result the ligaments of the fingers were instantly torn or stretched, which was extremely painful. Some practitioners sustained torn and stretched ligaments to all ten fingers, and their hands were contorted and crippled. It was too horrible to look at. (See Illustration 10)

4) Handcuffing the practitioner's hands to the bed frame and tying up the legs. Then two criminals pull the rope to swing the practitioner back and forth. With the handcuffs tightened one suffers horrible pain to the wrist joint. The violent swinging is extremely painful. (See Illustration 5)

5) After practitioners were handcuffed and hung onto the bed frame or prison bars, the prison guards or their assistants punched their chests and abdomens, kicked them forcefully and hit the practitioners with their knees. Some of the practitioners began to spit up blood because their internal organs were damaged from this abuse. (See Illustration 6) Falun Dafa practitioner Qiu Baoxue and a practitioner from Shuangcheng City were beaten up like this for more than ten days. Qiu Baoxue suffered from great pain because the tight fitting handcuffs cut into his wrists and hurt the bones. Thus, his two arms were crippled and he was unable to pick up or carry anything.

6) Squeezing the testicles.

7) Burning with cigarettes.

8) Whipping with a leather belt.

9) Handcuffing and tying the practitioner to the bed frame, then using a lighter to burn the practitioner's nose whenever he felt sleepy.

10) Forcing the practitioners to squat on the ground with hands clasped behind their back and not allowing any movement. After a long period of time the practitioners would feel extremely sore and painful in their legs. They were forced to stay in that position from five o'clock in the morning until midnight. Sometimes this torture went on until 2 a.m. Whenever the practitioner did not cooperate in any way or form, he would suffer from even more cruel torture methods (See Illustration 3). Every practitioner who refused to renounce his belief would be subjected to physical punishment. Many practitioners were forced to squat on the ground for as long as two months.

11) Hanging up the practitioner and then using needles to stab their feet. (See Illustration 7)

12) A group of people beat practitioners (See Illustration 4)

13) Handcuffing the practitioner onto a torture chair from behind his back. Then, a criminal would step his foot on the iron chains in between the handcuffs. The criminal would then press the chain down with one of his feet. Then he would step on the chain while thrashing or beating the practitioner uncontrollably. Also they might use an electric baton to shock the practitioner or pour cold water on the practitioner. (See Illustration 9)

14) Using an electric baton to shock the practitioner all over his body, including mouth and genitals.

15) Burning the private parts.

16) Stomping on the fingers.

The above are only a few of the cruel tortures used on Falun Gong practitioners at the Changlinzi Forced Labour Camp. We will disclose more of the torture methods used at that camp at a later date. All the illustrations were drawn based on descriptions by tortured practitioners, or from eyewitness accounts.

(1) Known as "open cangues" and "secret cangues": Cangue, the name of an instrument of torture, is now used for a person who is designated to supervise a practitioner.

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.ca/mh/articles/2004/6/10/76772.html