July 22, 2012 | By a Minghui correspondent from Jilin Province, China
(Minghui.org) Three months ago, Ms. Song Yanqun, a Falun Gong practitioner, went on a hunger strike to protest the inhuman torture inflicted on her by inmates who were assigned to persecute her at Heizuizi Women’s Prison. She is extremely emaciated, and her mind is not clear. Wang Lijun, the assistant prison warden, shouted, “We are not responsible for Song Yanqun’s life.”
In November 2003, Ms. Song Yanqun, a practitioner from Shulan City, Jilin Province, was illegally arrested by the Shulan City Police. In May 2004, she was sentenced to 12 years in prison by a Shulan City Court. Ms. Song was cruelly tortured, both mentally and physically, at Heizuizi Women’s Prison in Jilin Province. Ms. Song Bing, her younger sister, was tortured to death by the Chinese Communist Party because of her belief in Falun Gong.
The prison guards in Jilin Province Women’s Prison assigned collaborators to seriously persecute Ms. Song even though her health was extremely poor. They wouldn’t let her sleep or know what time it was. The collaborators took turns sleeping. They wouldn’t let her sit and forced her to stand, causing edema in her legs. They hung and suspended her upside down in the air. They tied her to her bed and force fed her. She was tied to her bed for long periods of time.
Demonstration of Cruel Torture: Tied to a Bed
Ms. Song’s parents sought out staff at the prison repeatedly while Ms. Song was on a hunger strike and in critical condition, but all the staff shifted the blame and responsibility elsewhere. They tried to reach the offices for the administration of justice at the Jilin Province Court but were only able to speak to staff from the complaints office. The gatekeepers at the other departments blocked them from making contact. They weren’t able to meet with any other departments. The complaints department shifted responsibility to the prison management and said that they should resolve the issue there. Afterwards, her parents went repeatedly to the management office in the Jilin Province prison. They met with staff from the complaints office as well as those responsible for carrying out the punishments and disciplinary action. They demanded an investigation and an end to Jilin Province Prison’s the law and persecuting innocent people. They demanded to bring their daughter home, but didn’t see any results after a month.
Wu Zeyuan, the warden of Jilin Province Women’s Prison, lost her temper when she met Ms. Song’s parents. She repeated over and over again that she had not persecuted their daughter. She also evaded the subject regarding the facts of the persecution inflicted on Ms. Song now and in the past. Serving as the prison warden, she cannot escape being responsible.
Wang Lijun, the assistant prison warden, said in a vicious tone of voice that they were not responsible for Ms. Song’s life. Gong Yunxia, the director of the prison hospital, said Ms. Song’s physical condition was normal and declined to engage with them any further. He completely ignored the facts regarding her medical condition, that she is sometimes absentminded, extremely emaciated and in poor health.
Ms. Song’s parents have travelled between Shu Lan City and Changchun for many days, asking help and trying desperately to save their daughter’s life. They are hoping to arouse people’s good nature and conscience to help them bring their daughter home and safeguard her life.
Jilin Province Women’s Prison:
Wu Zeyun, prison warden: +86-431-85375001
Gong Yunxia, hospital director: +86-431-85375095, +86-431-85375039
Wu Zeyun, prison warden: +86-431-85375001
Gong Yunxia, hospital director: +86-431-85375095, +86-431-85375039
Please refer to the original Chinese text for more names and telephone numbers.
Related article:
Nothing But Skin and Bones, English Teacher Severely Persecuted in Changchun Women’s Prison (Photos)
Name: Song Yanqun (宋彦群)
Gender: Female
Age: 41
Address: Shulan City
Occupation: English Teacher at the Harbin Dade Japanese School
Date of Most Recent Arrest: November 27, 2003
Most Recent Place of Detention: Changchun Women’s Prison (长春女子监狱)
City: Changchun City
Province: Jilin
Persecution Suffered: Sleep deprivation, illegal sentencing, forced injections/drug administration, beatings, hung up, imprisonment, solitary confinement, torture, force-feedings, interrogation
Gender: Female
Age: 41
Address: Shulan City
Occupation: English Teacher at the Harbin Dade Japanese School
Date of Most Recent Arrest: November 27, 2003
Most Recent Place of Detention: Changchun Women’s Prison (长春女子监狱)
City: Changchun City
Province: Jilin
Persecution Suffered: Sleep deprivation, illegal sentencing, forced injections/drug administration, beatings, hung up, imprisonment, solitary confinement, torture, force-feedings, interrogation
(Minghui.org) Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Song Yanqun from Shulan City, Jilin Province, has been severely persecuted in Changchun Women’s Prison. She now appears to be disoriented with dull eyes and disheveled hair, nothing but skin and bones.
Ms. Song Yanqun
Even though Ms. Song’s wrongful prison term has recently ended, the guards in the Education Division have attempted to force her to write the “Five Statements” (similar to the Three Statements). They threatened to not release her if she refuses and also placed her in the disciplinary unit. Ms. Song went on a hunger strike in an effort to resist the persecution. Sha, the female disciplinary instructor, tried to give her an injection. Ms. Song refused to cooperate and pulled out the needle. The guards tortured and force-fed her with food and salt water.
Ms. Song’s younger sister, Song Bing, was also persecuted and suffered tremendously both mentally and physically. She became homeless to avoid further persecution and passed away on July 30, 2009. Ms. Song and her younger sister were arrested at the same time. When Song Bing was on the verge of death at the Shulan City Detention Center, her parents went to appeal to the Shulan City Political and Judiciary Committee. The committee secretary, Zhao Wei, told them not to talk about the law with him and that he doesn’t need to abide by the law. The director of the Police Department, Xin He, said that if Song Bing was released, then he would be fired.
Ms. Song Yanqun, 41, graduated from Changchun College of Commerce, Department of International Trade, and was an English teacher at the Harbin Dade Japanese School. On November 27, 2003, officers from the Shulan City Police Department, led by officer Guo Wei, broke into her home and arrested Ms. Song and her younger sister, Song Bing. The director of the Shulan City Police Department, Xin He, and guards including Li Zhuo, Li Yaochen, Li Jiazhe, and Wang Tingbai, interrogated and tortured Ms. Song and her sister at the Shulan Nanshan Detention Center. They tied them onto a Tiger Bench; used slender sharp-pointed objects to stab their ears and eyes; and force-fed them with horseradish extract. Ms. Song was illegally sentenced to 12 years in prison.
At the Jilin Province Changchun Women’s Prison, Ms. Song remained steadfast, continued to practice Falun Dafa and refused to write the “Five Statements.” She was tortured with the “Big Hang Up” and held in solitary confinement for long periods of time. As a result, Ms. Song coughed up blood from her lungs. The disciplinary instructor assigned four “Baojia’s” (inmates assigned to monitor and torture practitioners) to closely monitor her 24 hours a day. She was not allowed to sleep and was often beaten and verbally abused. Ms. Song was confined to a small, dark room on the fifth floor and tied to a bed with her limbs suspended in the air about 20 centimeters (approximately 8 inches) above the bed. She had to relieve herself in the bed. Guard Liu Chunyang even put a comforter on top of Ms. Song’s stomach.
Torture re-enactment: Stretching Bed
In Jilin Changchun Women’s Prison, the most vicious method used to persecute Falun Gong practitioners is called the “Stretching Bed.” The victim is first stripped, and then tied up on a bed with thin cords. The guards stretch the victim’s limbs until her body is suspended above the bed with her weight carried on her limbs. This is extremely painful. Left in this position for a long time, a person could be maimed permanently. In May 2005, Changchun Women’s Prison began to implement another round of “transformation” on the illegally detained practitioners. Ms. Song was transferred from the hospital to the Education Division, where she was subjected to violent attempts to force her to “transform.” Because she refused to cooperate, the guards tied her tightly to aDeath Bed with a rope, and her limbs were stretched like “Five Horses Splitting a Body.”
As a result of being tortured with the Stretching Bed, Ms. Song lost all sensation in her legs, and they are now always cold. The bones in her right arm ache. Her hand shakes uncontrollably and she cannot write. She has become very mentally unresponsive. Her ribs on both sides and lungs ache and her tuberculosis has worsened rapidly. Even now, the scars near her ankles are still visible. Among the guards that participated in torturing Ms. Song are Cao Hong, disciplinary instructor Hu (who has since been transferred), and Liu Chunyang.
On April 12, 2012, Ms. Song told her mother during a visit that the night before four “Baojia’s” instigated by the disciplinary instructor stripped off her clothes and brutally beat her. They also stomped on her torso, legs, and feet. She was left covered in wounds and bruises. A “Baojia” also slaps her face every day.
Ms. Song is currently in a very difficult situation. We call on human rights organizations to support and pay close attention to Ms. Song’s case.
Changchun (Heizuizi) Women’s Prison, Education Division: +86-431-85375089
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