(Minghui.org) A man in Qinhuangdao City, Hebei Province, was recently sentenced to a 7.5-year prison term for his faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Mr. Tian Shujun, a 65-year-old former property maintenance worker, was arrested on July 29, 2020, and given 15 days of administrative detention. After he was released under residential surveillance on August 15, the police kept harassing him and later submitted his case to the Changli County Court in September 2021.
Mr. Tian was arrested again around April 13, 2022. After 21 days of quarantine at the police hospital, he was transferred to the Qinhuangdao Detention Center.
Mr. Tian stood trial at the Funing District Court on March 7, 2023. His lawyer entered a not-guilty plea for him. The presiding judge, Shi Wenjing, recently announced the 7.5-year sentence against him.
Past Persecution
Prior to his latest sentencing, Mr. Tian has served two labor camp terms for a total of four years, for upholding his faith.
Interrogation
Mr. Tian was working on a construction site in May 2002, when his supervisor deceived him into going to his office, using the excuse it was to talk to him. On his way there, Mr. Tian was arrested by five plainclothes officers and taken to the police station. He was interrogated and tortured in the evening. Below are the few torture methods he was subjected to.
- Tying His Hands Behind His Back
The most painful torture Mr. Tian suffered was having his hands twisted behind his back and pulled to the highest position possible before being tied up with a thin rope. The officers then wrapped the rope around his neck and tightened it on his back. To further increase his suffering, the police inserted a bottle between the rope and his back and also pressed on his arms. The pain was excruciating.
Torture reenactment: Tying with rope
- Electric Shocks
In this torture, the police shocked him with electric batons all over his body, especially the sensitive parts. They placed a photo of Falun Gong founder’s photo on the ground. When he lifted his feet to avoid stepping on the photo, they shocked his feet and legs.
- Slapped in the Face
Mr. Tian was chained in the metal chair for most of the time during the interrogation, with his hands and feet cuffed. The officers took turns slapping him in the face, which quickly became swollen. He had blood in his mouth and two of his teeth became loose (one of the teeth later fell out and the other turned a dark color). They then hit him with a mop handle until it broke. In the end, they stomped on his chest, leaving a dark mark. They also whipped him with a leather belt.
- Burning with Hot Water and Wax
When Mr. Tian’s wrist was injured, the police dripped melted candle wax onto the wound. They also dripped hot water into his ears.
First Three-year Labor Camp Term
After days of torture and interrogation at the police station, Mr. Tian was transferred to the Qinhuangdao City No. 1 Detention Center. He was taken to the Hehuakeng Forced Labor Camp in the same month to serve a three-year term.
Mr. Tian was forced to sit on a small stool every day from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m., while keeping his back and neck straight, his calves vertical, and his eyes staring forward. Any slight movement resulted in beatings or other physical punishment. Some practitioners’ buttocks festered from the prolonged sitting.
After the initial torture phase, Mr. Tian and other practitioners were assigned to different labor teams, including building construction, digging trenches, sewing soccer equipment, and making artificial flowers. The heavy labor often left him completely exhausted, with intense pain in his chest, like being stabbed with needles. The poor quality of food made his life even more miserable. During the break time, he was forced to watch propaganda videos demonizing Falun Gong.
After over two years of torture, Mr. Tian developed urethral stones. Not wanting to provide medical treatment to him, the labor camp released him on medical parole.
Second One-year Labor Camp Term
Mr. Tian was arrested again on July 21, 2010, for talking to people about Falun Gong. He was given another one-year term at Qinhuangdao City Forced Labor Camp after nine days at the Qinhuangdao City No.2 Detention Center.
The guards also forced him to work day and night without pay. There were no breaks on the weekends or holidays. If he refused to follow the guards’ orders, he would be beaten and verbally abused. His buttocks once became black and blue from the beating. His ribs were also fractured due to the beatings, and he was unable to turn his body during sleep due to the enormous pain.
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