(Minghui.org) A total of 18 Falun Gong practitioners in Dezhou City, Shandong Province, were arrested over the course of two days in April of this year. They were targeted by police after filing criminal complaints against former Chinese Communist Party leader Jiang Zemin, who initiated the brutal persecution of Falun Gong.

Six of the 18 practitioners are still detained, 11 have been released, and one practitioner's whereabouts remains unknown. Police ransacked their homes and confiscated some of their personal belongings.

Additionally, more than six practitioners in Dezhou were harassed by police for the same reason.

6 Still Detained

Mr. Ma Yuqing

Mr. Ma Yuqing, about 50, has been arrested and detained and had his home ransacked and funds extorted from him by police several times since the persecution of Falun Gong started in 1999.

He was last arrested at about 5:00 p.m. on April 22, 2016. A young lady knocked at his door, pretending to be looking for someone in the neighborhood. As soon as he opened up, several police officers broke in, ransacked the place, and took his computer and printer.

Mr. Ma is now being held in the Dezhou City Detention Center. When his wife sought his release, she was threatened and ordered to sign a document that defamed Falun Gong.

Back on August 11, 2009, over 10 officers from the local police station ransacked his home, took his Falun Gong books and materials, and arrested him. His mother, who tried to stop the police, was held down, and officers forced his wife to fingerprint the arrest order.

Mr. Ma was later detained in an isolated cell with many instruments of torture. They made him strip and ordered him to give them the names of all the other Falun Gong practitioners he knew. During his detention, his family members had 15,000 yuan (about $2,500 USD) extorted from them.

Mr. Sun Xiangren

Mr. Sun Xiangren, about 72, was arrested on the evening of April 22, 2016, and severely beaten. The authorities forced him to do labor for extended hours every day.

Ms. Chen Yulan

Ms. Chen Yulan, about 74, was arrested on April 22, 2016. When her son went to the local police bureau to ask for her release that night , he was detained for the night himself. His car was also held illegally.

Ms. Lu Duomei

Ms. Lu Duomei, about 60, was arrested on April 22, 2016. Her husband was detained overnight when he went to the local police bureau to ask for her release.

Ms. Zhang Xiuqin and Ms. Wang Yuqin

Both women are being held in the detention center.

11 Released

The following 11 practitioners have been released: Mr. Li Zhiyong and his wife Ms. Li Junling, Ms. Kong Xiangmei, Mr. Wang Jianping, Ms. Meng Xiuyun, Ms. Kang Shufeng, Ms. Zhang Wenyan, Ms. Guo Li, Mr. Zhang Qingcheng, Mr. Lao Jia, and Ms. Liu Yueping.

Some of them recounted what happened to them in detention.

Mr. Li Zhiyong and his wife Ms. Li Junling

At 5:30 p.m. on April 22, 2016, an officer from the local Domestic Security Division, posing as a water meter inspector, knocked on Mr. Li Zhiyong’s door. When Ms. Li Junling (Mr. Li was not at home then) opened the door, she was threatened and attacked. She had a heart attack and collapsed.

The police waited for Mr. Li Zhiyong and handcuffed him to a stair rail as soon as he arrived. Officers ransacked his home and confiscated his computer, two cell phones, a printer, Falun Gong books, and several other personal belongings.

Officers beat him so severely that his hands and mouth were bleeding, and several of his teeth were loose. Nevertheless, Mr. Li was taken to the local police bureau and interrogated all day. He was then taken to the Dezhou City Detention Center, where he went on a hunger strike for 13 days and was force-fed three times.

The guards handcuffed his arms and legs to the four corners of a bed. The officers who force-fed him made him choke several times. The food that he threw up splashed all over the bed, the floor, and his clothes.

When officers interrogated Mr. Li Zhiyong, he was too weak to utter a word or sit up straight. He was released and returned home after 30 days of detainment.

His wife Ms. Li Junling was taken to the hospital and monitored by several police officers.

Related report about Mr. Li Zhiyong:Six Members of Same Family Arrested for Suing Former Chinese Leader

Ms. Kong Xiangmei

Ms. Kong Xiangmei became seriously ill after she was arrested and detained. She was taken to the hospital for emergency treatment and was released and returned home on April 27.

Ms. Liu Yueping

Ms. Liu Yueping, 55, is retired and lives in Dezhou City. The police tried several times to arrest her after she filed complaints against Jiang Zemin in October 2015, but they could not find her at home. They also went to her 84-year-old mother's home to harass that part of her family, causing much distress.

On the evening of April 22, 2016, police tried again and arrested her. She exhibited symptoms of serious illness and spat blood while in the detention center. She was then released from custody.

Ms. Tang Shufeng

Ms. Tang Shufeng, about 57, was arrested on April 22, 2016, and detained for a month.

At the end of last October, four police officers arrested her at home as a result of the criminal complaints she had filed against Jiang Zemin. They forcibly took her fingerprint and detained her for seven days. Officers also extorted an unknown amount of money from her son.

Ms. Zhao Zhang

Ms. Zhao Zhang, about 60, is retired from the Zhongyuan Gas Company. She was arrested on April 22, 2016, and detained for a month.

On October 29, 2015, she was arrested and interrogated for suing Jiang. She was taken to the detention center but was not admitted because an exam showed she had tuberculosis. Local police still harasse her at home regularly.

Ms. Meng Xiuyun

Ms. Meng Xiuyun, about 67, was arrested on the evening of April 22, 2016 and detained for a month.

On October 26, 2015, four police officers broke into her home and took her photo and blood against her will. They attempted to detain her, but she failed the physical, so they released her.

Ms. Guo Li

Ms. Guo Li, about 40, was arrested at 5:00 p.m. on April 23. The police ransacked her home the following day. She was detained for a month.

She had been arrested before for suing Jiang--on October 28, 2015. The police interrogated her, forcibly drew her blood, and detained her for seven days. The same evening, her teenage daughter was also taken to the police station by her teacher. Officers interrogated the girl until 9:00 p.m.

One Missing

Mr. Zhang Guozhu was known to have been arrested on April 22, but it is unclear whether he has been released. His family has no information on his whereabouts.

Background

In 1999, Jiang Zemin, as head of the Chinese Communist Party, overrode other Politburo standing committee members and initiated the violent suppression of Falun Gong.

The persecution has led to the deaths of many Falun Gong practitioners over the past 16 years. More have been tortured for their belief and even killed for their organs. Jiang Zemin is directly responsible for the inception and continuation of the brutal persecution.

Under his personal direction, the Chinese Communist Party established an extralegal security organ, the “610 Office,” on June 10, 1999. The organization overrides police forces and the judicial system in carrying out Jiang's directive regarding Falun Gong: to ruin their reputations, cut off their financial resources, and destroy them physically.

Chinese law allows for citizens to be plaintiffs in criminal cases, and many practitioners are now exercising that right to file criminal complaints against the former dictator.

Related article in Chinese:山东德州李志勇遭警察殴打、灌食